Time Loop
by D. Russel Smith
Summary: We all know that four light warriors saved the world, but we don't know the details. How? Why? What brought them together? What drove them on? How did they get the orbs? These questions are answered here. Rated for gore, please R/R.
1. It Begins

Disclaimer: Although I own the game, I do not own the copyright. Please do not sue me.

AN: As you will be able to see once you start reading, this is based on the original final fantasy. The Party is (of course) a thief, a warrior, a black mage, and a white mage. The Black Belt and Red Mage will make appearances, however.

Tarin trudged down the ruddy road that lead to Coneria, The City of Dreams. He didn't know why he was going there, but he was sure it had something to do with the strange orb in his pack. He seemed drawn to this place, but he didn't know why. His black hair wafted gently in the wind, blowing into his handsome face, causing him to brush it futilely away.

'This is ridiculous,' he thought to himself, 'Here I am, jaunting along a path half-way across the continent to a kingdom I've never been to with no map, and I haven't made a single wrong turn.'

The forest parted, and Tarin saw the high walls of the kingdom proper. Made of pale grey stone, the parapets seemed almost white in the midday sun as throngs of people milled back and forth at the intersection he was approaching, between the city and the harbor. As he joined the sparse crowd heading towards the gates, the thief glanced around and behind him, taking in his surroundings. Most of the people were fishermen or pilgrims, nothing worth taking from them.

Dust hung in a low cloud about the travelers' feet from the constant use of the path, and the walk had been taking its toll on Tarin's legs for hours now. After what seemed like an eternity, the picaroon finally came to the main gates, which had a guard posted on either side, but they appeared to be only for show, as they questioned none who came or went.

Tarin made to enter the gates but something stopped him. Some strange sensation he couldn't quite identify held him back, as though he were to wait where he was. Sighing to himself, the thief moved off the road and found an unoccupied space of the wall to lean against as he sat gratefully on the soft grass, releasing a breath of relief as he did. For a time, he simply sat there with his eyes closed, enjoying the fact that wasn't walking anymore. Then he opened his eyes and looked around, unsure of what to do next. Just as his irritation with these urges began to be too much, his attention was caught by a man moving down the road toward the gate. Caught, because the man towered above everyone around him.

XXXXX

Barbatus smiled in the bright sunlight as he walked lightly with the crowd of people headed for Coneria, his wild red hair unaided by the light wind. He constantly took in his surroundings, alert for threats, but his real concern was thieves. Not many men would willingly pick a fight with Barbatus, since he stood nearly two full heads taller than most, and was built like an ogre. His two packs rested beside each other on his back and his feet created mud in the dirt road, still being wet from the ship he had travelled on.

The walk was long, but nearly done as he approached the gates, flanked by city guards leaning lazily on their pikes. However, something kept him from entering. Shrugging this strange sensation off, he turned to his left to find a place on the wall to sit, when he noticed a small man with black hair sitting there, staring at him. Barbatus was accustomed to looks, but generally they were sidelong and hidden, while this man stared blatantly. Still, the warrior by trade would normally shrug this off as well, being that this stranger was clearly no match for him in a fight, but for some reason he found himself ambling up to him, saying "Hey, there."

"Hey, back," came the reply, "Forgive me for not standing, but I've been walking all day and I'm not sure I can."

Barbatus chuckled as he dropped his packs and plopped down next to the dark haired man and extended a hand, saying "My name's Barbatus, but my friends just call me Blotch."

Taking his hand, the man replied "Tarin. So what brings you here?"

The giant laughed and said "You wouldn't believe me if I told you.

Before Tarin could reply, Blotch noticed that they both looked to their left in unison, as though something had caught their attention, although neither of them had been looking there a moment ago. A short moment passed, and Blotch's eye fell on a tall man in white robes, splayed in red, with his hood drawn.

XXXXX

Xak wiped the sweat from his hooded brow, his long red hair flowing out from beneath his cowl. He had been walking through the grassy plains toward Coneria for the better part of an hour, now, taking the time to circle around the forest that surrounded all but the gates of the kingdom. This allowed him to avoid the majority of the hazards associated with travelling on foot, but taxed his scholarly body rather heavily.

His white robes were splayed in red tiger stripes and now stained green at the hem, and his pack was heavy, holding several changes of clothes, food and one heirloom passed to him from his instructor in the arts of white magic: a crystal ball, just a little larger than a closed fist. As he trudged along, he couldn't help but wonder how warriors and soldiers could spend hours in brutal combat, wearing all that armor and swinging around great weights of steel. He carried a small warhammer at his waist, but after this walk, he imagined that he would last maybe five minutes in a pitched battle before he succumbed to exhaustion.

Of course, that would be assuming that his role was that of a warrior, which he was not. The healing arts were his specialty. Unfortunately no amount of white magic could make him feel rested. He may be able to heal the bruises on his feet, but not the stiffness in his legs, which was the real problem. The white mage's reverie was broken as he was jarred nearly off his feet by a slightly shorter man careening into him at a quick stride, shouting his irritation and continuing on his path muttering. Xak had been so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't realized that he'd bypassed the forest and found himself on the beaten path from the harbor to the city gates.

Regaining himself, the mage turned to his right and followed the sparse crowd. It wasn't long until he had reached the walls, looming over him in the midday sun. At the unseen urging of the orb in his pack, Xak glanced to his left and his gaze quickly fell on a pair of men sitting against the wall, one a bit shorter than average with black hair and leathern clothing, the other a giant of a man in a red tunic and fiery hair. Smiling pleasantly, the healer strode over to them and said "Hello. If I were to guess, I would say that you two were waiting for someone."

The pair looked at each other curiously, and the shorter man said "If I were to guess, I'd say you were, too."

Xak chuckled lightly and replied "Perhaps I am. My name is Xak, a white mage by trade."

The large man rose from his spot on the ground and extended a mammoth hand, saying "Barbatus, but my friends call me Blotch. I pick fights for a living."

The white mage shook the warrior's hand and looked at the other inquisitively. After a moment, he said "Tarin, and you'll have to forgive me, but I'm not all that sure I can stand."

Xak started forward, the thought to check for any injuries Tarin might have in mind, but stopped and looked back toward the gates in unison with the other two, to see a man in night-blue robes and a brown, conical, wide-brimmed hat which concealed his face emerge from within the city, moving directly for them.

XXXXX

Zane strode purposefully through the streets of Coneria, merchants, traders, salesmen and swindlers called out for any business they could find, but he ignored them. His dark robes and mage's hat kept his face shadowed, and most knew better than to anger a black mage. But intimidation was not his desire, he was focused on the orb he took when he fled his former master as it guided him to the city gates. The orb was all he carried on his person, since he knew these streets well and the dangers of thieves was rampant. But from what he understood, the orb would not let itself be taken from him, so he wasn't particularly concerned.

As he passed the guards on either side of the gate, he turned to his right and strode over to a trio of men who had no reason to be seen together, all looking at him. A behemoth all in red, a warrior from the look of him, a tall man, though still a head and a half shorter than the warrior, in white robes highlighted in red, likely a white mage, and a short, unassuming man with black hair and travelers garb sitting against the wall. As he arrived at their location, the shorter man sighed and said "Hey Blotch, help me up, will you?"

The warrior stepped over and grabbed the traveler's arm and hoisted him up a bit quicker than he expected and he nearly lost his footing, whiled the white mage smiled and said "Good day. Would I be wrong in assuming you are here for the same reason as I?"

After a short pause, Zane replied "Unlikely. My name is Zane, a black mage, as you can tell."

Grasping the black mage's hand, the white replied "Xak, a white mage myself. My acquaintances, here, are Barbatus, though he prefers Blotch, and Tarin."

The other two men voiced their greetings, and Zane said "Now that introductions are out of the way, if you would all be kind enough to follow me, we have much to discuss," and turned back toward the gates.

"Woah, wait a minute," Tarin said indignantly, "why should we follow you?"

The two mages looked back at the men standing still, looking at Zane, who replied, "You've had a strange tugging feeling in the back of your neck, guiding you all the way here, right?"

Tarin and Blotch both blinked in surprise and Xak shot up an eyebrow as the black mage continued "You look like you've been traveling with it the longest. It must be maddening by now, and if you don't follow me, it'll never go away."

With that, the Zane turned again and strode to the city gates. After a moment, Tarin swore quietly and followed, accompanied by Xak and Blotch. When they had caught up with the black mage, Tarin muttered "It had better be close by, because I'm gonna lay down and I won't get up for a long Time."


	2. The Prophecy

Disclaimer: Not mine.

The four acquaintances sat around a table in a poorly lit pub, people milling by and about with no rhythm around them. Xak sat upright with a cup of wine nearly untouched in front of him as he waited for something to happen, while Blotch guzzled his second glass of ale and belched loudly. Tarin sat in a withdrawn state, staring at the black mage across from him, who sipped calmly from his own cup of wine before saying "I know you all have questions, and I will answer what I can."

For a moment there was silence, until finally Tarin said "Alright, I have no idea why I'm here or what I should be doing, or what cruel joke of fate has me sitting with people like you."

Xak gave the dark haired man a curious look while Blotch barked indignantly before being silenced by a hand from Zane, who answered "You are here because fate brought you here. Normally destiny allows you to reach its ends on your own, but circumstances have forced its hand."

"Okay," Tarin replied, "but I'd say that raises more questions than it answers."

Letting out an irritated breath, the black mage said "The orb, thief, the orb you have is what brought you here."

Tarin's eyes widened as Xak raised an eyebrow and Blotch looked back and forth between them, saying "Thief? You're a thief?"

"Not so loud," the dark haired man hissed, looking around nervously to see if anyone overheard.

The white mage looked intently at the man beside him for a moment before quietly asking "Have you stolen anything from us?"

Tarin looked at him curiously and answered "No. In fact I haven't taken anything since I got here."

"And we're just supposed to believe you?" Blotch growled, leaning forward threateningly.

Before the thief could respond, Xak said "Yes, we are."

Confused, the warrior looked at the white mage saying "Uh, we are?"

"I have a talent for finding the truth," Xak said politely, "and unless he could fool royal spymasters, he is not lying."

"Well," Blotch said, flustered, as he scratched his head, "what if he could fool royal spymasters?"

"Then the orb would not have chosen him," Zane said plainly.

The other three returned their attention to the black mage as he placed his now empty wine cup back on the table, saying "There is a prophecy, written by a man named Lukahn, stating that when the world is in turmoil and the elements rage against nature, four warriors of light will appear, each holding an orb to restore balance to the elements."

"Yeah, I know that story," Blotch said, causing Zane's eyes to widen beneath his hat, "but the further breakdown says that each of them will be tested first, to ensure that they are the warriors of the prophecy. I don't know about you, but I haven't faced any tests yet."

"How do you know of this?" Zane asked simply.

Shrugging, the warrior replied "I'm from Crescent Lake."

The black mage looked as if that didn't answer his question at all, but Xak replied "Ah. That explains it."

Zane looked back and forth between them before asking "Explains what?"

Xak finally took a second drink of his wine while Blotch answered "Lukahn lives there. He's the town elder."

Nodding his satisfaction, the black mage continued, "I see. Regardless, I believe that we are the 'Light Warriors' Lukahn spoke of."

Tarin scoffed a laugh before taking a drink from his mead causing the white mage beside him to ask "You disagree?"

Replacing his flagon on the table, the black haired man said "You three, maybe, but like you said, I'm a thief. How does a common cutpurse factor in to your prophecy?"

For a moment Zane remained silent as the other three looked at him, before reaching behind him to another table and taking two empty wine cups and placing them upside down in front of him, and upturned his own. Pulling out a small piece of amber, he placed it beneath the middle cup and instructed the three of them "Keep your eye on the stone."

The black mage moved the cups rapidly around in front of him for a moment, and when he stopped, he looked at Blotch and asked "Where is the stone?"

Confused, the warrior said "Middle cup."

Zane lifted the cup to reveal it was empty, then looked at Xak, and asked him the same thing. The white mage raised an eyebrow, and pointed to the cup at Zane's left, which he lifted to reveal that nothing was there, then asked "So where is the stone, Tarin?"

"That's not fair," Blotch said, "There's only one left!"

But the thief only chuckled and said "In your left palm."

The warrior and the healer looked at Zane as he held up his left hand, the piece of amber tucked in his palm.

After a moment, Blotch said "Okay, I'm confused."

Replacing the stone in his robes, the black mage explained "I am very intelligent. 'Gifted' is the word most often used. But for all my intellect, I couldn't have caught that."

"So?" Blotch prodded.

"So you have your strength and skill with a blade, I have my intellect and black magic, Xak has wisdom and healing abilities. But Tarin provides us with stealth and cunning."

Blotch looked at Tarin again, this time with a mild appreciation. The thief in turn looked at each of the mages in turn, the black impassive, the white simply smiling. Shaking his head, the cutpurse said "Whoa, ho, wait a minute, you all actually believe I'm supposed to be one of these 'Light Warriors?'"

"Yes," Xak said politely "And we are not alone. The orb you carry believes so as well, apparently."

Tarin stared in disbelief for a moment before sighing in bewildered resignation, saying "Well all right, then. So what do Light Warriors do?"

"Yeah," Blotch spoke up, "those funny feelings that got me to come here aren't there anymore. How do we know what to do?"

"One would reason," the white mage offered, "that our tests would be the next course of action, and that discovering them would be part of the test."

"Well, that's helpful," the thief said sarcastically.

"No matter," Zane said, gathering the attention of the others, "I can't say which of us is to be tested, but I believe our first trial is obvious enough. Yesterday, Sara, first born of Coneria and crown-princess to the throne was kidnapped. Today we all came together. Tomorrow we rescue her."

"Hold on," Blotch said, "Light Warriors or not, why would you need us? I mean, you're probably powerful enough to take the elements back yourself, so why all this?"

"Knowledgeable yes," Zane said, "powerful no. Though I know every spell a Black Mage can learn, I possess absolutely no practical experience."

"Yeah, but if you know every spell," Blotch continued, "can't you just whip up some mega, death, destroy-you-knaves spell and be done with it?"

"No," Xak answered, "He said he knows every spell a Black Mage can, not every black magic spell."

"What's the difference!" Blotch exclaimed, frustrated.

"Mages are only allowed to learn spells up to a certain power level," Zane said, "Only wizards may learn the most powerful of magicks, and I am no Wizard."

"Well, okay," Blotch said, slightly embarrassed, "But even a mage can rescue a princess if they have powerful enough spells, right?"

"No," Tarin said, "it requires a strong will to cast spells, and it saps their energy. Think of their magic like a well. As one becomes more experienced, his well gets deeper, and his magic stronger. But if he has no experience, he can cast one spell of low power and that's about it."

For the second time, Zane showed surprise. Xak's jaw slackened, and he asked "How do you know that?"

Smiling arrogantly, the thief replied "Cunning."

After a moment of silence, Blotch stood and said "Whelp, it's getting late, and we've got quite the task ahead of us tomorrow. You know how to find her, right?"

Zane nodded his affirmation, and the warrior nodded his satisfaction. Placing a coin on the table for his drink, he said "I'm gonna go pick up a sword and then I'm gonna hit the hay. We'll meet at the gates at dawn." turned and walked out the door.

The other three looked at each other and rose. Voicing their farewells, the men split off into different directions, Any doubts they had kept in an isolated moment in Time.


	3. Reflections of Character

Disclaimer: I own nothing but a few names.

The woods were thick with overgrowth, which was mildly surprising to Xak, considering the relatively small area it encompassed. The white mage looked to his left, where Tarin was busy picking ticks out of his unruly black hair, just behind Zane who walked with enigmatic silence at the flank of the preternaturally large warrior at the head of the small party. The day had been uneventful thus far. Zane had apparently taken care of all the necessary arrangements regarding their travel, including food and camping gear, which now rested easily in the pack carried by Blotch. Xak began considering his companions to pass the time.

Barbatus, or "Blotch" as he preferred, was a large and physically strong man, but not particularly intelligent. However he had a good heart, and a strong sense of honor. Xak believed the former to be the only thing that all four of his little band of miscreants had in common. Tarin, for example, not well educated, but extremely quick-witted and although not much stronger than he was, quite a bit faster and far more nimble than the healer could ever hope to be. Add to that a sense of iron loyalty, and you had a very reliable ally.

'Xak, on a slightly different note,' Tarin thought to himself, 'is possibly the most insightful man I've ever seen.'

Tarin's thoughts mulled this over carefully as he idly flicked a captured tick back into the woods that spawned it. 'Wise and self-assured, able to heal any wound, probably one hell of a ladies' man, too. Have to keep an eye on that one.'

The benevolent picaroon allowed his gaze to drift to the slightly taller sorcerer in front of him. 'You, on the other hand,' was the beginning of his mental soliloquy, 'you are either the best thing that's ever happened to me, or a serious problem. Xak and Blotch have taken you in on good faith, but I've never had faith in anything. I'm watching you, Zane.'

As if in response, the black mage immediately turned his head and looked at the thief with a questionable expression for a short moment, then turned back around as though he had forgotten why he looked in the first place. Tarin shivered slightly, thinking 'Creepy bastard.'

Blotch tromped through the undergrowth without notice, humming softly to himself one of the few tunes he cared for from his home town. He was thinking about his role in the group, obviously that of the strong man, and enjoying the sounds of nature. The chattering of squirrels, the distant hoof beats of deer, the birds chirp—wait. There were no birds chirping.

The warrior stopped abruptly, shooting a hand up to signal the others to do the same. Carefully he swept his vision from side to side, trying to discern what had frightened away the birds. He heard the tell-tale shuffle of Tarin's feet, presumably about to ask what was going on, just before the attack came.

Several small humanoid creatures armed with short, curved blades came at them from all directions. Blotch drew his weapon with a grace that his size belied and in one swing carried the thin blade through two of the assailants, and turned to see how his comrades were faring. Xak had taken out a medium-sized war hammer and cracked the skull of one, while Zane had taken refuge behind him. Though two more of the beasts lay slain with blade wounds, Tarin was nowhere to be found.

Muttering a curse, the warrior lunged in a seemingly awkward fashion to thrust his blade-tip into one of the diminutive attackers while reaching the opposite direction with his off-hand to grab another by the head and hurl him against a tree. Though this maneuver had probably saved Zane's life, it also threw the swordsman off balance, and he sprawled face first on the ground, his blade still trapped in the body of a fallen beast. Fortunately Xak managed to beat off the last of the raiding party with a couple of well-placed swings and a loud yell. Within seconds the attack was over, with no less than eight of the small half-men lying dead or dying on the ground.

Zane stood back from the one creature he had actually had to fight and somehow bested with his walking-stick, unconscious on the ground. He had managed to escape injury but saw that Xak was bleeding slightly from a shallow cut on his arm, and Blotch actually had a blade sticking out of his shoulder, although he didn't seem to notice until he stood, when he yelped and looked at the foreign object in his arm with disbelief. Xak started over to treat his friend, but the giant of a man peeled the blade from his own shoulder without so much as a flinch.

Zane deduced that the initial outcry had been more out of surprise than actual pain, and saw now that the wound itself was little more than a scratch, the brunt of the impact taken by the chain shirt, whose links were undoubtedly the primary force which kept the blade in place. Turning at a rustle in the bushes behind him revealed Tarin, coming out from his hiding place.

Xak saw Barbatus stalk forward, his minor injury completely forgotten as he strode purposefully towards the rediscovered thief. The healer deftly wrapped his own cut while he watched the angry giant bellow "Where the hell were you? Xak almost got killed, and you ran away!"

To Blotch's further aggravation, the thief simply shrugged. "The healer's still alive, isn't he? I killed two of 'em, and you had the situation well in hand."

Before the fighter could come up with a response, Xak interjected, saying "He is right. He did his part, and you did yours. Remember, Barbatus, he is not a warrior."

Grumbling, but unable to think up a viable argument, Blotch trudged away, back in the direction of the northern ruins.

XXXXX

The forest well behind them, along with a second, the quartet sloshed their way through a small marsh area, each seeing the others in a slightly different light. Blotch continually grumbled about Tarin's cowardice in battle, allowing nothing to break his dark mood. Tarin was watching Zane curiously, remembering how only hours ago he had seemed so frightening, yet during the fight, he had appeared almost helpless, like a child in desperate need of protection. Zane looked at Xak with renewed respect, not having expected a fellow mage to be so adept at physical combat. All the while Xak pondered Barbatus' unexpectedly judgmental response to Tarin's natural strategy.

Tarin jingled his coin purse, which he had replenished by looting the bodies of the goblins, as Blotch had called them, while the others weren't looking. He figured he would bring his acquisitions up when it was necessary, and not a moment before. Slightly perturbed at Blotch's unfair accusations, the thief was in no mood for chivalry or fair play.

The swampland wore on for only a short while, and eventually gave way to plains, which extended for the better part of the day, with scattered bits of conversation coming up between the companions as they trudged ever forward, not quite sure what to expect. Tarin eventually decided to scout forward and left the mages to try to reason with Blotch.

"He is not a coward," Xak tried, "he simply does not take to combat the way you or I do. Is Zane a coward for seeking shelter behind my hammer?"

"Well, no," came the reply, "but at least he stayed and fought. That little cutpurse just disappeared!"

"After killing two of the imps," Zane reminded "Which is twice what I did."

"Yeah, but," Blotch momentarily stumbled his words, and then came back with "If he killed two, why didn't he stay and kill more?"

"Because I'm not a warrior," Tarin's voice called from the hill just ahead, "I'm a thief, as you're so fond of barking for all to hear. I sneak and I steal, and on occasion, if necessary, I'll slit a throat or two, but I'm no good to anyone if I get myself killed trying to live up to your skewed, close-minded ideals."

Blotch had no counter for this unexpectedly forward approach, and subsequently remained silent, thinking the thief's words over. Silence held sway over the group until, only an hour or so before nightfall, they came upon their destination. Over a rise in the plain was a once regal structure now little better than rubble, ruins of a time long past. As one the group approached and stopped short of the entrance. Zane stepped a little away from the group and began his recount of events.

"Last year," the black mage began, "the paladin Garland was given the rank of First Knight under the king of Coneria. Last week, he was accused of accessing dark powers and influencing the king through twisted magicks. Two days ago he broke out of prison, killed half the guard, fought his way into the royal quarters, took Princess Sara out of her own bed, and stole away into the night. He came here. Whether or not the princess is still alive, I do not know, but I do not believe Garland to be foolish enough to kill her when she is his only bargaining piece. He is not to be underestimated. This is, in my opinion, the first of the tasks set before us to prove who and what we are. Are we ready for this?"

A series of agreements followed, and Zane turned with the others to face the entrance of the crumbled castle. Slowly at first, but with growing speed and determination, the four travelers entered the darkness within the collapsed Temple of Chaos, gray rubble now, but surely a grand palace once upon a Time.


	4. The First Revealed

Disclaimer: Not mine. Don't sue.

The First Revealed

Blotch strode with determination at the head of the small band of adventurers. The darkness was broken here and there by torches at regular intervals, proving that someone was using the facility, such as it was. The warrior already had his weapon drawn, as did the other three, expecting an ambush at any moment. The interior of the collapsed temple was as much as was expected; crumbled walls and moss dominated here. At one time this place must certainly have been an amazingly intricate labyrinth, but all the confusing tunnels and passages had long since been buried. As it was, only one direction remained intact, leading straight forward.

Though he was in the back, Zane was the first to notice the movement above them. At first thinking it a trick of shadows, the warlock glanced cautiously up and saw that something was indeed moving in the darkness just beyond vision. On the ceiling.

Zane stopped and made a low hissing sound to grab the attention of his comrades. One by one they followed his gaze to the upper darkness, peering in vain to deduce what had caught his, and now their attention. Agitated with their lack of results, Blotch grabbed a torch from the wall and held it up further to illuminate the mystery.

Tarin froze first, then screamed, then ran blindly backwards into a wall. On the ceiling was a spider the size of a goat, and the thief was deathly afraid of spiders. The creature jumped from its perch onto the hapless form of Xak, driving him to the ground and sending his hammer skidding across the floor. Zane immediately began to chant slightly, but stopped when he saw Blotch grab the thing by two of its hind legs, spin and splatter it's abdomen against the stone wall. Throwing the remnants over the crumbling wall and out of sight, the fighter turned with a concerned expression to Xak who stood and dusted himself off, slightly shaken but unharmed.

As the healer went to retrieve his weapon, Zane approached Tarin who sat huddled against the wall, staring with glazed eyes in the direction of the encounter. The black mage placed a firm hand on his companion's shoulder and shook him gently, snapping him back to reality. Tarin looked around at Zane's expressionless face, then to Xak, visibly worried, then to Blotch who appeared to be having little success at stifling a laugh. Still too shaken to be angry, Tarin stood and offered quietly "I'm sorry I . . . I don't handle spiders very well . . ."

"That much is obvious," Blotch chuckled, earning him a disapproving look from Xak.

"It's alright," Xak said comfortingly, "everyone has phobias. I myself have an unnatural fear of water."

Tarin only nodded and started moving forward again. The others, unable to do anything else, simply followed suit, soon retaking their original marching order, with blotch in the lead, Zane taking up the rear, and the remainder side by side between them. The hallway wasn't particularly long, and the four soon came to what was once a set of wooden double doors, though only one remained. Light emanated from inside and Blotch, wasting no time, stepped impulsively forward.

The other three followed, and all four stopped at the sight that confronted them. A high-burning hearth lit the room with artful tapestries hanging from the ceiling; luxurious furniture and trinkets adorned the interior as well. Near the western wall was a long table sporting various foods and beverages, and seated at the head was a man in battle-worn armor, wearing a dark cloak and a great horned helm. But what caught Blotch's eye was what decorated the wall itself.

She had to be the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, over five feet tall, long blond locks, tempting figure, full lips, and pleading green eyes. And she was chained like street urchin caught stealing from a noble's coffers.

The armored man stood indignantly and immediately demanded "Who dares to challenge me?"

Xak took the initiative (probably hoping to end the problem peacefully) and said "We're here to return the princess to her kingdom."

A fierceness building in his words, the armored man balefully responded "No one touches my princess!"

"We do," was Tarin's audacious reply.

"And just who do you think you are?" The kidnapper demanded, bemused.

Blotch took another step forward and proclaimed "We are the Light Warriors!"

Unimpressed, the dark paladin responded "Light Warriors? Hah! You have yourselves on quite the pedestal, don't you? Well I, Garland, will knock you all down!" and drew a bastard sword which hung from the back of his chair.

Blotch drew his own smaller blade and charged. Garland took the charge and easily parried a flurry of careless thrusts, taunting with "Slow! Witless! Sterile!"

Knocking the warrior to the ground with the pommel of his sword, Garland continued to mock him "You have no guile!" then spun and flung a large dagger through a tapestry causing the thief behind it to cry out in pain, while Garland commented "And I think I would rather you stay where I can see you."

Turning his head, he saw Zane finish a chant and fire explode from his fingertips. Quickly Garland grabbed a particularly thick tapestry from above him and yanked it down to use as a shield against the magical assault. Although the adornment was ruined, the fire only managed to singe the outer edges of Garland's tunic. The knight darted forward and slashed at the black mage, who managed to avoid a killing stroke, but still cried out when the heavy blade sank into the flesh of his arm. Garland wasted no time turning to Zane's fire-haired counterpart and thrust, catching the white mage in the stomach.

Xak choked when the Garland's sword pierced his flesh, and screamed as the blade was torn from his solar plexus. Immediately Xak administered one of the two healing spells he had the energy to cast on himself, which did not completely heal the wound, but at least removed the immediate threat of death. Blotch stood and saw Garland turn to face him again.

This time, the warrior picked up his sword and took a defensive stance. Impetuousness had cost him his first round, he wouldn't lose a second. Garland charged him and swung his blade furiously, laughing all the while.

Their blades collided several times, but Blotched noticed a single mistake that continued to make itself known: every third or fourth swing, Garland went high. Blotch took this into account, and on the next predicted high stroke, instead of blocking, the warrior thrust with all his considerable strength, delivering a shattering battle-cry and driving the point of his blade neatly through Garland's breastplate, chest, heart, and cleanly out through his back.

Garland's laughs were cut short as he was driven backwards into a wall. His own weapon forgotten, the black knight looked uncomprehendingly at the hilt protruding from his own body. Blood seeped out from the newly formed crack in his armor and trickled out of his mouth in a gurgle. Blotch stepped back and watched bewildered as Garland's body began to disintegrate. The black knight's death scream faded with his body as an echo inside the sizable chamber, and after a moment of confusion, the victor turned to find his comrades. Xak and Zane both knelt over Tarin, who lay on his back, breathing raggedly with a dagger impaling his breast.

The mages were both bleeding, but apparently their injuries were only flesh wounds, whereas Tarin's injury would likely end up being fatal. Xak shook his head sadly, saying "Even if I had any spells left, I have not the power to heal a wound of this magnitude."

Before anyone could respond, a deep baritone voice boomed from the entrance "I do."

The three capable turned and saw a very tall man in a red traveler's hat and cloak standing in the entrance, long gray hair hanging in strings past his shoulders, belying his age. The newcomer stepped confidently forward and knelt beside the fallen man.

Unsure of what to do, the other three simply remained stationary, watching the stranger suspiciously as he grasped the handle of the dagger with his left hand and began to chant. Shortly, the red-clad man swiftly drew the dagger out of Tarin's chest and placed his right hand over the wound. Though the thief gasped and arched his back in pain, he soon relaxed as the bleeding slowed and stopped, and his breathing returned to normal.

Suddenly Tarin sat upright and looked around momentarily before tearing his leathern armor and shirt away from his chest to examine a neat scar where moments before a dagger's blade had rested. Tarin then looked up gratefully at the red-cloaked healer and asked "Who are you?"

Before answering the new arrival proceeded to heal Xak and Zane's wounds. Meanwhile, Blotch made his way over to the chained form of the Conerian Princess. Taking up Garland's bastard sword, Blotch swung the blade at the chains. Much to his surprise, the large blade sliced neatly through the worn shackles and imbedded itself halfway into the stone wall. The princess took no notice of this and immediately flung herself onto the large warrior, wrapping her arms around him and sobbing her thanks into his chest. Uncomfortable at such adulation, Blotch tried his best to comfort the girl in his arms.

The warrior's attention was grabbed by the newcomer once he had finished healing everyone, as he wasted no time in stating "My name is Alor. I cannot speak for you three, but you-" at this he indicated to Blotch "-are a Light Warrior."

The warrior noticed a strange, curved, particularly long sword resting at Alor's hip. The princess continued to hold onto him, but had stopped crying and was now paying attention to the events as they unfolded. Zane was the first to speak, saying "You are a red mage, then?"

"No," Alor replied matter-of-factly, "I am a red wizard. With Garland's death, I am the last."

The two mages were both surprised at this, both speaking at once, Zane saying "You are a Wizard?" opposite Xak's "Garland was a wizard?"

Alor simply nodded, said "You three have your own trials ahead. I wish I could aid you, but I am forbidden. You must restore light to the orbs. When you have all proven yourselves, the true battle will begin," and walked briskly out of the room before anyone could stop him.

The four men looked at each other, and finally Xak, realizing the fifth presence with a start, made introductions to the young woman holding Barbatus.

"Greetings, my lady," the white mage said with a slight bow "I am Xak, my comrades are Zane, Tarin, and Barbatus, whom I see you have already met."

Blushing slightly but still holding the large man, the princess edged forward and said "I am Sara, Princess of Coneria, and you all have my sincerest gratitude. I humbly request you escort me back to my father's castle, that you may be properly rewarded."

Nods and agreements followed, and soon the princess, three travelers, and one Light Warrior were on their way back whence they came, Blotch having surmounted the first trial with a surplus of Time.


	5. High Society

Disclaimer: Doesn't belong to me. Except some names. Those're mine. And some event details. I made them too. And most of the dialogue. And a couple characters. But other than that, and maybe some other things I forgot, this ain't mine.

AN: So anyway, I think I'm doing a much better job of actually getting this done. The way it's going, it'll actually turn out very long, but that's a good thing. Makes it interesting. I'm also writing it very frequently, so that's not bad either. Um, could I maybe get a review, or two? Please?

High Society

Barbatus gulped hungrily of the vast variety of foods arrayed before him on the long court table, much to Princess Sara's amusement, who sat on his left. Xak sighed inwardly, smiling to himself. The healer looked about the room and took in the sights of the various nobles, lords, knights, and high-ranking military members seated at the same long table, the King of Cornelia at it's head, the princess on his right, queen on his left, next to their youngest daughter. Seated just below the royal family were the four guests of honor, responsible for the defeat of the foul dark knight Garland and the safe return of the crown princess. Barbatus showed abhorrent table manners, but great respect for the company. The two mages, as expected, were well-mannered and educated, well versed in the intricacies of politics. Tarin showed startlingly good table-etiquette; where he learned it was anyone's guess.

Tarin was mildly impressed at Blotch's appearance. Though his eating habits were still disgusting, he had cleaned up quite well for this event. His normally wild hair was now combed backwards, and a crimson dress tunic Tarin didn't know existed modestly accentuated his muscular frame. Tarin's own black tunic was slightly more extravagant, boasting slight silver embroidery, matching his own black hair. The mages didn't look particularly different, although there were subtle changes in their robes. Tarin had the sneaking suspicion that they were wearing their Wizard's robes for the occasion, though they both still kept their faces shadowed in the mage fashion. The thief had just begun to formulate a plan on how best to relieve his rich company of some of their monetary burden, when the king stood from his high-backed chair and tapped his goblet loudly with his fork.

The room silenced as the King began, "Lords and ladies of the court, esteemed guests, friends and family, I wish to offer all my royal gratitude to these four heroes, who have ended a terrible threat to the royal family, and the kingdom itself. The courage they displayed in the face of a threat so great was the stuff of legends. My daughter tells me that many were wounded, nearly killed, and yet all charged forward bravely, unconcerned with their own fates. Garland was a powerful red wizard, one of the last, and single-handedly decimated an entire regiment I sent after him. You four succeeded where my army could not. In your honor, I have already set into motion the reconstruction of the fallen bridge over the northern strait, which will be named Heroes' Pass."

At this, a cheer went up among the gathered nobles, which were silenced momentarily by another rapping of a goblet by the Queen. After the room silenced, the tall woman added her own proclamation. "My daughter's life is precious to me. Unlike most royalty, ours is a happy and loving marriage, a caring family. We are not so concerned with politics and intrigue as we are with doing what's right. My sages tell me that you four are indeed the light warriors of legend. Thusly, to fulfill a promise and to reward you, I offer you this—" at this the queen produced a lute from behind her chair "—which has been handed down from queen to princess for nearly two thousand years, to be handed off to four warriors of light who will stop the darkness from consuming our world. The court wizards assure me that there are strong magical properties behind this instrument, but are unable to decipher what. That I leave for you, as I turn possession of this artifact over for your safe-keeping, in thanks for your services."

Blotch stood, slightly embarrassed and unaccustomed to such high society, and graciously accepted the fragile-looking music-piece. Unsure of what else to do, the warrior simply thanked the queen and sat back down, placing the lute carefully beside him. Looking to his right, Blotch gave Tarin a questioning glance, but the thief just shrugged and looked past him. Turning back, the warrior saw Sara talking to her father quietly, who in turn spoke to his wife, and momentarily both nodded to each other, and the king turned to smile an acknowledgement to the princess, who stood and rapped softly on her own glass.

The young woman, beautiful and sure, looked at the gathered nobles and guests, and said "Members of the court. It is customary for decisions such as this to be announced before you all, so I could see no better opportunity. The Light warriors have been guests in the castle for nearly a month as preparations for this event and reconstruction of Heroes' Pass were underway. During this time I have spent many hours with them all, learning of all their noble qualities and ideals. Each of them has more than proven themselves worthy of glory and adulation, respect and even reverence. But one among these four continually stood out in my mind, and my heart. Barbatus Teller, Son of Crescent Lake, I would ask you now to be . . . my husband."

Blotch nearly choked on his own tongue. The princess didn't seem to notice and continued "Cornelia has a long history of just rulers, known for their virtue and their strength of character. In time, my father will pass on his crown, and I can see no worthier recipient than you. Be my king, Blotch," This last part she said more softly, looking directly at him.

Tarin elbowed the warrior and whispered fiercely into his hear "Say yes, man, for the love of the night, say yes!"

Hesitating only a moment longer, the large man stood from his seat and, bowing slightly, said "I could think of no honor greater, than to have your hand."

The resulting cheer surprised Tarin, who expected Blotch's common birth, combined with the suddenness of all this to cause great unrest among the nobles. Oddly enough, they seemed as enthusiastic as the princess did. Tarin watched as the dinner was abandoned and bands were brought out to play celebratory music and the nobles danced and expressed their joy at the engagement. The thief resignedly stood to make the most of the situation.

Zane stood in a nondescript corner of the room, watching the gaiety that ensued. The black mage watched as Xak stood conversing with a jolly looking couple, Tarin mingled with people as he passed, and Blotch danced with his bride-to-be. Enjoying the drink in his hand, Zane contemplated their situation. Although they were heroes here, they had no idea where to go next. Zane had visited the treasury, and had been informed that the greatest treasures were locked away through strong enchantments, requiring the mystic key to open. Unfortunately the location of that key was lost in history, being at least as old as the lute the queen had given to Blotch. Another problem was that even if they found the key, what would they do then? Theoretically, the true source of the disturbances plaguing their world was somewhere on the northern continents, but since there were no suitable harbors that any sailors had found, all communication with the people living there (if there were any) had been cut off for nearly two hundred years.

Zane was shaken from his reverie by Tarin, who had somehow appeared beside him without alerting him to his presence. Once he had acknowledged the thief's presence, Tarin said "Okay, I've lifted enough to get us through our next journey, and I coincidentally think that I know where it should be."

Zane raised an eyebrow and asked "Where?"

"Elfland, in the southern continent," was the response.

"Elfland?" the mage returned, "Why?"

"Well," Tarin explained, "it's these trials we're supposed to be undergoing. You see, they seem custom-made for heroic adventurers, right?"

Zane slowly nodded his agreement, thinking that from a certain point of view that was the truth.

"Right," Tarin continued, "and Elfland is ruled by Prince Marinaeis. But about five years ago Prince Marinaeis was put into a magical sleep by some heady mage named Astos."

"Astos?" the black mage interjected, "As in the king of the dark elves?"

"There may have been some mention of that," the thief replied casually "But if the prince of Elfland is ensorcelled into unnatural sleep, causing misery and suffering to his subjects, then shouldn't the fabled Light Warriors . . . ?"

Zane nodded again, seeing the logic in his companion's words. Xak, who had joined them some time ago, also nodded his agreement. Zane thought for a moment, and then asked "How do we get there? There are no ships capable of such a long voyage in Coneria."

"Pravoka," Xak answered immediately, "It's a large port city east of here. There are certain to be transports from there to Elfland."

"How far away?" Zane asked.

"About forty leagues," the healer responded, "but the trip is not very dangerous. A few madponies here and there, and imps of course, but aside from that there is no real danger."

"How do you know all this?" Tarin queried.

"Pravoka is where I am from," Xak answered matter-of-factly.

"Well then," Zane said, "Heroes' Pass is complete, and the journey will likely take the better part of a week on foot, so we had best leave as soon as possible."

"Tomorrow, then," Xak concluded, "for now, let us enjoy the festivities."

Tarin nodded, pointed out "Someone's got to break the news to Blotch."

Xak sighed and said "I will do it. But someone will have to distract his betrothed for a while whilst I do."

Tarin grinned, saying "Leave that to me," and headed in the direction of his large companion.

Xak followed and watched as the thief politely interjected himself into the affianced couple's conversation and asked the princess for a dance. The healer arrived to see him lead her to the dance floor, slightly concerned because he himself had studied many dances, and this one was particularly difficult, then turned to his friend. "Barbatus," the healer said, "we have to leave in the morning."

Blotch nodded somberly, saying "I suspected as much. I already told Sara."

Xak nodded and asked "how did she take it?"

"Well enough," the warrior said brightly, "but I told her that I thought I'd be leaving right after the party, so when she learns that I'll be leaving tomorrow instead, she'll probably be happier."

"Speaking of which," Xak added, "how do you feel about this arrangement? I know you and the princess have been spending a lot of time together this past month, but a marriage?"

"Actually, we've been speaking about it for about a week now," was the reply, "but I didn't think she'd say yes so soon."

Smiling, Xak said "Well then, I am glad for your good fortune."

"Thanks," the fighter said happily and motioned to the dance floor, saying "Where did our little cutpurse learn to dance like that?"

Looking, Xak saw that Tarin was indeed dancing as though he were a professional performer, peerless on the floor. Dumbfounded, Xak could only respond with "I have no idea."

The ball continued, with revelry and happiness. But over the four travelers heads hung the cloud of destiny and possible defeat. In the morning, they would set out for their next trial, to be revealed only in time . . .


	6. The Second Revelation

Disclaimer: Your soul is mine! But the concept of this story isn't. sigh

The Second Revelation

The swing of Xak's hammer ended in collision with a bushel of bananas in an overhead tree, which fell into Tarin's waiting arms. The thief plucked one from the batch and passed it to Zane. The sorcerer took one for himself, and passed the bundle to Xak, who likewise took one and passed them to Blotch. The warrior, anxious to move, took two and threw the rest into his saddle bags, stripping the peel from one and chomping impatiently at it's contents as Tarin remounted. Spurring their mounts into action, the four companions continued their uneventful second day. Xak cantered up to Tarin and nodded for him to drop back slightly so that they could talk in private. A few moments passed in silence, then Xak asked "Where did you learn your etiquette?"

Surprised, the thief could only ask "What do you mean?"

"Your table manners," Xak elaborated, "your dance, your knowledge of politics and high-society. Not common for one of your profession."

The picaroon shrugged and said "You'd be surprised what you learn out of necessity."

"And there again," Xak mentioned calmly, "Your vocabulary and grammar are on par with Zane and myself. Most thieves have trouble saying words with more than one syllable."

Tarin grinned, causing Xak to comment on his well-kempt appearance.

The thief sighed and said "I believe you'll learn the answer soon enough."

The healer raised an eyebrow, but let the matter drop as Tarin rode forward to rejoin the rest of the group. Riding forward himself, Xak studied also the thief's masterful horsemanship, talent for navigation and deduction, as well as thinking back on several other qualities the rogue had that seemed peculiarly out of station for him. Granted, Xak had a skill or two that you wouldn't expect from a white mage as well, but Tarin's flew in the face of the thief he claimed to be, talented though he was at larceny. Xak listened as Barbatus commented on the thief's ability to dance as well, echoing his own queries.

"I mean," the warrior continued, "I've seen carnival dancers who weren't as good as you."

"Just something I picked up," was the casual reply.

"Well that 'something' led to Sara talking about setting you up with her sister."

The two men laughed as Zane watched and listened. He was completely certain by this point that Tarin was well aware of his eaves-dropping. He glanced over to see his fellow mage ride up beside him. Zane asked "So did you manage to glean any useful information?"

Xak only shook his head. Zane began to think about their trip, grateful that the King of Cornelia had granted them these mounts; with them they should be able to reach Pravoka before nightfall. The sorcerer began to think on their good fortune of an uneventful trip, when a rustling in the bushes just ahead caught his attention. Blotch, in the lead, stopped short, along with the others. Dismounting, the warrior drew the two-handed sword he had claimed as spoils from Garland just in time to see a twelve foot long lizard emerge, hissing dangerously.

Blotch leapt into action, landing just to the side of the creature, hacking at it's mid-section, but the beast was impossibly fast for it's size, and moved out of the way, the warrior's weapon tasting only dirt. Blotch looked to see the creature distracted by a horse running on the other side of it, and Xak standing at it's front. Seizing the moment, the fighter lunged forward. This time his blade found home, just below the beast's shoulder, but the thing refused to die, and jerked toward it's flank, wrenching the sword from Blotch's grasp. Xak ran forward in an attempt to rush the creature before it could react, but it's tail swept forward and collided squarely with the healer's chest, sending him reeling back. Blotch was about to make another attempt forward, having drawn the rapier that he had wisely kept as a back-up weapon, when a bolt of lightning, originating from Zane's fingertips, flashed and struck the creature square in the skull. Moving dazedly, the beast could not react in time to save itself from Blotch's merciless thrust into the same spot the bolt had struck, forming a neat cabob out if it's head.

Grinning, Blotch retrieved his blades from the monster's corpse, saying "That was just what I needed."

Tarin came from slightly ahead, leading the horse he'd sent as a distraction back to the group, replying in good nature with "Why does that fail to surprise me?"

The two men laughed and they turned to see Xak already mounted with a sour look on his face, the front of his robe stained with whatever slime the creature's epidermis excreted. Blotch called "You alright?"

The healer touched his chest and nodded. 'Aside from some minor bruising,' he thought to himself, 'I should be fine (unless this muck turns out to be a contact poison).'

Zane rode forward and said "Come, distracting and entertaining as it was, the iguana serves no further purpose. We must continue."

Nodding their agreement, the others mounted where applicable and rode forward to join him. The remainder of the day was spent eating fruits and dried meats, yammering about one pointless subject or another, and strengthening the bonds of friendship they had still not completely forged. As the sun began to nestle into the horizon, the port city of Pravoka came into view beyond the forest's edge, no more than three stone-throws from their current position. Excited, the white mage urged his mount into a gallop, and the others followed suit.

The landscape passed by unnoticeably as the four companions reached the city's gates. Xak arrived first, and halted at the entrance and dismounted. Tarin and Blotch arrived next, and stopped with him, seeing the horror on their comrade's face, they looked in through the open gate. Following his gaze south to the harbor, they saw the problem: the ships lay scorched and smoking in the water, many submerged with only the masts daring to peer above the water's surface. Only one remained intact, a sizable warship anchored off to the west of the beach adjacent to the docks. The street itself was deserted, save for a street urchin who ran terrified up to the white mage, huddling to his leg.

Xak looked down to see the child, soot from the smoke blotting her tear-streaked face. The girl, a dark haired native barely older than ten, sobbed "Mr. Xak, Mr. Xak, please help us!"

The white mage stroked the child's head comfortingly, saying "Do not worry, little one, we shall set this aright."

"How, Mr. Xak?" the child inquired, "They took the entire town!"

Tarin knelt next to the girl and asked "Hey, kiddo. What's your name?"

The child sniffed and said "Maemi."

"Hi, Maemi," the thief replied, "I'm Tarin. This is Barbatus and Zane. We're friends of Mr. Xak. And you know what? We're the Light Warriors."

The child's eyes widened, as she asked "Really?"

"That's right," Tarin answered, "So don't you worry kid, we'll take care of everything. But I gotta know, who did this?"

"It was pirates," the child answered, "Their boss is in the Lion's head pub next to the water."

"Is that a fact," Tarin said, "Well, we're gonna go there and set things straight. But right now, I need you to go hide somewhere, and tell anyone you come across to do the same. We can handle this situation, but we don't want any of you to get hurt in the process, okay?"

Maemi nodded and reluctantly dashed away into an alley. Tarin stood and looked to the others. There were no words. The four comrades entered the city and headed straight for the Lion's Head Pub under Xak's guidance. They arrived to see a one-eyed man with a scruffy beard and two of his men, all dressed in ragged garments, laughing at a fallen serving girl outside the door. Blotch bristled, but not so much as Xak, who strode immediately forward, and demanded "Just who in the Nine Hells do you think you are!"

The one-eyed man looked up and blinked in surprised, then said "You don't know?"

In their silence, the man continued "I'm Bikke, scourge of the seas, and you'd best be showin' some respect for me."

Xak advanced, drawing his hammer, saying "I'll give you just once chance to get on your boat and get out of my city."

Bikke laughed. "Oh, you're a courageous one, ain't you? Mates! Show these land-lubbers what-for!"

With that, one of his men drew a large signal horn and sent a resounding baritone braying into the air. Xak took two steps forward before Blotch caught his shoulder, saying "Uh, Xak? I think you should turn around."

The white mage turned to see over a dozen longboats already deployed from the warship an arrow's shot from the shore. Xak glanced back at a smirking Bikke, then asked "How many?"

"Nearly a gross," was Tarin's reply.

"Can we beat them?" the healer prodded uncertain.

"Not a chance," Blotch answered.

"I can," Zane said and strode confidently to the shoreline.

The pirates were nearly upon him, most of them having abandoned the longboats in their eagerness for slaughter. Zane chanted a slow chant, and just before the first wave of invaders had reached him, lighting exploded from his hands. His target, however, was not any of the pirates, but the water itself. Electricity surged through the waters, ravaging the attackers, who were all soaked. Screams of pain and shock arose carried from the waters through the streets and one by one the invading pirates fell, until none remained. The black mage turned and walked calmly back to his companions.

Blotch grinned, and took one of Bikke's attendants by surprise, throttling him and ramming his head against the pub wall. Xak claimed the other with his hammer, then made for Bikke himself.

"Wait!" the pirate cried, throwing his hands up protectively, "Don't kill me! Please, don't kill me! I-I never killed anyone in the town, they all surrendered without a fight! I'll give you anything you want! Me plunder, me crew, even me ship, just please don't kill me!"

Tarin stepped forward and said "Your crew? Your ship?"

Slowly lowering his hands, the pirate nodded. Tarin looked at Xak and said "We do need a ship, and his is the only one available."

Before the white mage could respond, a familiar baritone voice from behind the four said "Indeed, you do."

Turning, the four saw Alor, standing enigmatically before them. The Red Wizard continued "Bikke's ship will provide you excellent transport and defense, a wise decision. And you, Zane, have now proven yourself. You, too, are a Light Warrior."

The four men stood silently, not quite expecting this to be one of the trials. It seemed too easy. But Alor gave it no thought, turning to disappear behind a building. Bikke stirred and said "You four are the Light Warriors?"

Blotch turned back to the pirate and said "That's right. Why, does that bother you?"

The pirate shook his head, not wanting to offend them. Xak finally holstered his hammer, and said to the group "We'll have to commandeer that ship immediately to stake our claim."

"Yeah, you might want to leave that to me," Tarin said seriously, "I know how these people think, and how best to convince them that we're in charge."

"Wait," Blotch interjected, "Did Zane just kill them all? Who do we need to convince?"

"There will still be an operating crew on board," Zane said "kept separate from the invading force."

"Oh," was the simple reply.

The four headed toward the shore, intent on making the ship their new home. Zane had proven himself to be one of the fabled light warriors. Two more trials lay ahead, and then the real test began. Will the four prove victorious, or will they fail the test of time?


	7. Shore Leave

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

Shore Leave

"Wake up you bunch of rot-gut dogs!" Tarin shouted as he boarded the _Infernal_.

The remaining crew jumped at the outcry. Having seen what happened to their comrades, they were all justifiably frightened. Tarin continued "I want all of you scallywags lined up in front of me right this instant!"

Xak was impressed at the effect the thief's words had on the crew. The buccaneers arrived in front of the four allies within minutes, lined up and standing erect. The healer watched as Tarin walked disparagingly up and down the rank, scowling at each man in turn. When they had all been assembled, Tarin stood in front of the center of the gathering, and boldly stated "My name is Tarin Marinori. If any of you ever call me that, I'll have you strung out and hung trailing the rudder. To you, I am Captain Tarin, Captain Marinori, or just Captain."

The rogue's proclamation had little effect on the men. Apparently they had been expecting this. The new captain approached on of the sailors and demanded "Do you understand what this means?"

"Aye, Cap'n," was the only response.

Unsatisfied, the thief walked back to the center and demanded "And the rest of you?"

A thunderous "Aye, Cap'n" emanating simultaneously from the assembled crew was his answer. Content with this, Tarin returned to his comrades, and informed the crew "Excellent. I would like you to meet my first mate, Zane."

The crew nodded, relaxing a little and standing more at ease. Tarin continued, addressing the white mage "This is my apothecary, Xak."

Finally coming to the warrior, the rogue finished with "And this is your new quarter-master, Barbatus. He'll be bunking with the lot of you, so I'm sure you'll get to be great friends rather quickly."

Blotch grinned, cracking his knuckles. The crew were all visibly intimidated by the giant of a man that would be sharing their sleeping quarters, who stepped forward to introduce himself: "You bunch of low-lives can call me Blotch."

Re-taking the floor, Tarin strode forward and said "We, gentleman, are the Light Warriors."

The surprise and disbelief came as no shock, and the thief continued "Believe it or not, that's what we are. And you sorry lot are going to help us save the world. Why are you gonna do that? Because I told you so! But also because we'll be traveling all over the world, raiding ancient ruins and damnable keeps, dungeons and castles, and everything we liberate from within goes straight to this ship."

The crew seemed to respond much more positively to this, and Tarin added "Also, since you're the crew that helped the light warriors liberate the world from the tyranny of the dark forces, when you're all done, you'll be welcomed as heroes."

The pirates' eyes finally shone with the hope that they were telling the truth, and Tarin took this opportunity to get their journey underway, shouting "Now get to work you sorry pack of ingrates! Prepare to ship off; we leave for Elfland at first light!"

The crew scattered to tend to various tasks, and Tarin turned to face his companions, saying "Well, you've got till morning to do whatever you need to do in town. Sorry we couldn't stay longer, Xak, but the crew here wouldn't give such a kind reception to weakness."

Xak nodded understandingly, and all but Blotch left the boat, who called that he was going to oversee the transportation of their goods onto the ship. The healer walked calmly through the city streets. Night was falling, and they would leave in the morning; he didn't have much time. Entering the magic shop, Xak was greeted by the pleasant smile of his former teacher, Eliana, the head healer of Pravoka. The woman wore similar white robes with red highlights, and also remained hooded most of the time. But when she saw Xak, she immediately closed the shop and dropped back her cowl, mirroring Xak's movements. She was an older woman, but had aged gracefully, few wrinkles blemished her face, and those that did came from smiling often.

"Xak!" the woman exclaimed, "What are you doing here? I thought you were going on a long voyage."

"I am," Xak replied, "but this happens to be one of the stops. I leave in the morning, but I wanted to see you before then."

"Oh, I'm afraid you came at a terrible time, what with the pirates and all," Eliana replied.

"Actually," Xak said, "my companions and I have already taken care of that problem."

"You were one of those that defeated those rascals?" the older woman asked amazed.

"Well, three of the four of us did nothing," Xak responded, "Tarin, Barbatus and myself simply watched as Zane, a black mage, dealt with the whole situation single-handedly."

"Really," Xak's teacher nodded, "Then were you also involved in that skirmish in Coneria?"

"Indeed we were," Xak said, "In defeating Garland, the man responsible, Barbatus passed the trial proving him to be a Light Warrior."

"Light warrior?" Eliana said still amazed, "Then are you one as well?"

"I do not know," the young mage replied, "Zane passed his trial this afternoon with the pirates, but Tarin and I still await ours."

"Tarin," the woman said, rolling the name around, "Barbatus. You said that Zane was a black mage, but what of these other two?"

"Barbatus is a strong warrior," Xak answered, "and Tarin is . . ." at this, Xak hesitated, then concluded "he is a thief."

Eliana shot an eyebrow up, displaying where Xak had picked up the habit, and said "You make company with thieves, now?"

"It is not so simple as that," Xak explained, "the orb you passed on to me was what called me to Coneria in the first place, and the other three met with me at the same time, each holding an orb of their own."

"Then you believe that this was fate," Eliana prodded.

"I do," Xak confirmed, "And do not think badly of Tarin, he has a good heart. Although, there is no doubt in anyone's mind that he is far more than he claims."

Raising her eyebrow again, Eliana inquired "Oh? How do you mean?"

"He knows things," Xak answered, "things that no common thief could know. He is skilled in dance, politics, high-society, etiquette, even knowledgeable of the fundamentals of magic."

"Have you any theories?" the woman asked.

"One or two," Xak answered, "perhaps a former spy, or even assassin. Both would require those skills."

"Spy or assassin," the woman echoed, "It is possible. But why would the crystals call someone like that?"

"It is not entirely certain that they did," Xak explained, "he has yet to be tested, after all."

"True," Eliana mused, "but how would one even fall into his hands, if not for fate? Then again, if he is also a thief, he could have stolen it from it's rightful owner. I do not see any wisdom in choosing a criminal to save the people of our world."

"Bear in mind," the young healer said calmly, "it is likely that he either is, has, or will at some point be spying on us during this conversation."

"He is untrusting, then?" the woman asked.

"No," Xak answered, "At least not of me. I would tell him of our talk if he asked, and he knows this. But he does have a certain preference and talent for staying informed."

"I see," the woman said and began placing some tea out to boil, "And the other two, have you any misgivings about them?"

"None," was the reply, "Barbatus is courageous and pure of heart, if somewhat headstrong. He tends to act before he thinks his actions through, but always for a good cause, I have noticed. Zane, by contrast, thinks everything through carefully before taking any action. Methodical and calculating, I must say that he is the anchor that keeps our group grounded and level-headed. But he too is pure of heart. Honestly, I believe that having such a heart is the only thing that all four of us have in common."

"Then you think that Tarin is pure of heart as well?"

"No doubt whatsoever."

Eliana smiled and poured two glasses of tea, offering one to Xak, who gratefully accepted. The conversation turned towards the past and new stories, fond memories and new shared. Tarin crept from his hiding place and moved back towards the ship, smiling and thinking to himself '_I wouldn't say I'm exactly PURE of heart . . ._'

The four companions finished their night to a dull drizzle lulling them to sleep. They each knew their destiny lay ahead in the morning, so they would sleep tonight with the rain falling like the sands of time.


	8. A Minor Secret

Time Loop 8

"How long until we arrive?"

Tarin turned to Zane, who had asked the question. Looking back out to the sea ahead of him, the thief sighed. "I'm not sure," he admitted, "I'm not even certain we're headed in the right direction."

Zane raised an eyebrow beneath his hat, and looked to the sea himself. They had been sailing for three days, and the previous two of them they had been immersed in such a thick fog that no one was certain where they were. Tarin had put on a good act of confidence, which was strengthened by the fact that the crew wasn't entirely certain of their destination to begin with, so they could arrive anywhere and he could tell them that it was the correct location. To make matters worse, the first day of their voyage, there was a sea storm that completely blew them off course to begin with. Before more speculations could be made, the man in the crow's nest called "Land ho!"

Producing a spyglass from within his robes, Zane searched in the direction the scout was looking. Tarin waited until Zane said "There is land, and even a small abandoned port just ahead."

Nodding, the thief turned and called "Prepare for dock!"

The crew rustled about their duties, readying the anchor and long-boats. Within minutes the fog broke, revealing grassy land. Blotch appeared on the deck, sword in hand, asking "Fight? Is there a fight?"

Tarin sighed and Zane answered "No, only land."

Looking at the landscape, Blotch asked "So where's this Elfland we're supposed to save?"

"It's not here," Tarin answered, shaking his head, "I have no idea where we are."

The warrior looked at Zane who merely shook his head. Shrugging, Blotch called "Eriks! Eriks, get your lazy carcass over here!"

Shortly, a short, stocky man in torn pantaloons, no shirt with a scruffy beard appeared, and asked "What can I do ya fer?"

Pointing to the swiftly approaching coast, the warrior asked "Do you recognize this place?"

"Sure'n I do, Blotch," the man answered "It's right near the dwarven caves, northwest of Coneria."

Tarin swore loudly, and Zane stated "Then we're completely turned around."

"No, we can use it," Tarin said, "The dwarves might know something about where we're to go after we've saved Prince Marinaeis."

"Perhaps it would be best if we did not mention that particular part of our quest to the dwarves," Zane suggested.

"Yeah," Blotch agreed, "Elves and Dwarves have never gotten along."

"Oh, trust me," Tarin replied absently, "I know all about that."

"Oh?" Zane asked.

Recovering his composure, the thief said "I've dealt with elves a time or two."

Before a reply could be made, a tall man with a hooked nose and a missing ear appeared and said "We're arrived, cap'n. Will we be 'journin' ashore?"

"No," the ship's captain answered, "Blotch, Zane and Xak will go. The rest of us will remain here."

Raising his eyebrows, the black mage asked "You won't be joining us?"

Tarin shifted nervously, and said "No, I think it best if I stay behind on this one."

Blotch, seeing the reaction on the two crewmen's faces, slapped the thief on the shoulder and laughed out "Ha! As if our captain would stay! You couldn't even make such a statement and keep a straight face!"

The two crewmen seemed to believe the warriors show and turned away. Looking at the large man, Tarin asked "What? Why?"

"Those two saw that," Blotch explained, "They were concerned that it may be a sign of weakness, which is just asking for a mutiny."

"So I have to go now?" the thief complained.

"If you want to keep your ship," the mage replied.

"Spit of the dragon," Tarin cursed, "Alright, let's get ready."

Within a few minutes the four were in and out of a longboat and walking southwest toward the dwarven caves. The man Eriks had given them concise directions that were proving fairly accurate. Grass and woodland passed them by as the day wore on, the sea remaining within jogging distance. Just after passing a marsh, Blotch froze. Zane looked past the warrior to see a huge mass of flesh with no discernable shape, save for a gaping mouth lined with jagged teeth. The creature sat chewing on the carcass of some dead animal, and had yet to notice the traveling party.

"What is that thing?" Tarin asked.

"We call it a creep," Xak answered, "It is a creature born of the flesh of those who died in the great war combined with foul magic."

"It's huge and hideous," Blotch stated.

"The subterranean ones are bigger and uglier," Zane stated.

The warrior shivered at the thought, then drew his bastard sword and began an advance. Tarin reached to try to stop him, but the fighter would not be dissuaded, stepping from the brush from where the four had been spaying on the creature. The creep noticed him immediately, moving away from it's meal and bracing for combat with a speed that it's size and shape belied, then charged just as quickly, teeth gnashing.

Blotch rolled to his right and swung at the creature's flank, opening a deep gash which it didn't seem to notice as it turned to face him once more. The thing started forward, then abruptly spun around, spraying the dark slime that served as it's blood from a second wound it had received from Tarin, who was knocked from his feet by the reaction. Still it made no sound, nor did it slow as it strafed to the side, keeping both assailants from getting behind it again. The thief scrambled to his feet, his rapier in hand, when a pale streak of freezing cold passed just beside him and struck the creature head on, causing it's pink flesh to turn a sickly shade of purple and blue, frost forming directly where it struck.

The creature rolled back, it's enormous tongue lolling from it's gaping maw, and Blotch rushed forward to deliver the final blow, a downward stroke which hacked the creature nearly in two.

"Note to self," Tarin said, sneering at the dead thing, "creeps have no internal organs."

"I tried to warn you," Zane said matter-of-factly.

"So was this another test?" Blotch asked while clearing his blade of the filth from the creature.

"Too easy," Tarin responded, shaking his head, "And either you or Zane could've handled it alone."

Xak nodded his agreement as the four continued their journey, which continued uneventfully. Plains rolled by the companions in small fields, broken by the occasional brush or grove of trees, and finally by stony foothills. Eventually the hills grew large enough to warrant the title of a small mountain range, peppered by caves. Zane drew up to Tarin and said "I notice you failed to shave this morning."

The thief shrugged, saying "It happens."

Xak and Blotch were a small ways ahead, Blotch telling foul jokes which made the healer blush, though he couldn't stifle his laughter. The black mage leaned a little closer and mused "Why would a thief have wanted to stay on the ship for this? After all, dwarves are well known for their treasure hoard. And you knew quite a bit about the prince of Elfland's plight, as well. You didn't even flinch at the mention of Astos, which would have most knowledgeable individuals shuddering."

Tarin looked at the black mage curiously, then looked ahead, remaining silent. This time Zane leaned very close, almost touching the thief, and said "Are you going to want to stay on the ship when we reach the Elven Kingdom as well, half-elf?"

Tarin stopped and turned to the mage beside him, a scornful look on his face. Beneath Zane's hat, his eyes flashed with a momentary yellow glow, but revealed nothing as he stared back at the thief. For a long moment they looked at each other, until finally the rogue shrugged and said "I suppose you would have found out sooner or later. Just don't expect me to answer any questions."

"You already have," was the mage's reply.

"What're you guys doin'?" Blotch called from ahead where he and Xak had stopped when they noticed they were alone, "We're here!"

Tarin rushed ahead, followed by Zane, and when the two arrived they saw a great cavernous opening in the mountain barred by a great set of double-doors which had to have been crafted by a master. Intricate scrollwork laced the wooden planks and iron bracings alike. Outside the door stood two guards in equally intricate armor, holding double-bladed war axes, standing just under four feet tall, but each at least as broad as Blotch at the shoulders.

Tarin reluctantly stepped forward and called "Ho! We seek audience with the Dwarven Council!"

One of the guards called back "Who makes the request?"

Blotch stepped forward and responded "The Light Warriors!"

The two guards looked at each other, then called "Rally Ho!" and the doors swung inward.

Blotch wasted no time and started forward with a mage on either side. Tarin followed a short moment after, hoping not to be discovered this time . . .


	9. Possibilities

Disclaimer: I own your soul! But not Final Fantasy.

Possibilities

"I am no expert on the subject," Xak said as he examined the stones on display, "but these are easily the finest gems I have ever seen."

"And the finest you ever will," the dwarf beside him replied proudly, "These are the gauge."

"Gauge?" Blotch asked.

"Yes," the dwarf replied, "we use these to determine the quality of all the gems we find."

"I see," Zane said, "Aren't you worried about thieves, King Dorin?"

"We have an effective deterrent," was the reply, "Any potential thieves we catch are beaten, flogged, castrated, stocked for a week, and ultimately disemboweled."

Tarin's eyes widened with each word, yet he kept silent in the rear of the room as Xak said "I see, so you make certain that it is not worth the risk."

"Correct," the gruff dwarf replied, "and we are very good at catching thieves. Now if I could just break through the southern wall with as much ease, I would be a happy man."

"The southern wall?" Blotch asked.

"Aye," the king answered, "long has the inner sea been blocked off from the rest of the world. I would build a canal allowing ships to pass through to the ocean, increasing trade and providing opportunities for exploration. Alas, the earth there is composed of a stone I've never seen before now. Stronger than common iron, it is. I've discovered the focal point, but I've no means of destroying it."

"Focal point?" Xak asked.

"The point in the wall that, if destroyed, would cause the entire cliffside to collapse, opening the waterway."

"Have you any ideas?" the white mage asked.

"None, unfortunately," Dorin replied, "Perhaps the means lies within the Hall of Kings Past, but I am denied entry to that as well."

"What stops you?" Zane asked.

"The doors, wonders crafted before the great war, are both impenetrable, and locked by the Mystic Key, whose location has been lost in history."

"Legend speaks of a substance that might aid you," Blotch said.

"Aye, you mean the trinitrotoluene powder."

"Uh, yeah, that sounds about right," Blotch offered.

"What's trinitriv . . . toleno . . ." Tarin said, finally speaking.

King Dorin looked at him curiously before answering "Trinitrotoluene powder. We call it TNT for short. A black powder that, when ignited, explodes with a force greater than any black magic I've ever seen. At least, that's the legend. I'm surprised you know of it, Sir Barbatus."

"I must admit that I am surprised as well," Xak added, "How did you come to know of this powder?"

Shrugging, the warrior replied "My father insisted that I learn lore when I was a boy."

"A wise man, your father," Dorin commented, "Pray tell, did he know the secret of the TNT?"

"If he did, he never shared it with me," Blotch answered.

"Pity," the dwarf king said, "but enough about my misfortunes. Tell me, what brings the fabled Light Warriors to the Ur Mountains?"

"As we said earlier," Xak said, "Only Barbatus and Zane have passed the trials proving their status, Tarin and I still await ours."

"Details," Dorin said dismissively, "You travel together, met at the same time, seek the restoration of the elements, I'm sure you'll be proven soon enough."

"You humble us with your confidence," Xak said, "but it is we who would like to aid you. You see, although we know our goal, we know not how to achieve it, and hoped you might share some insight."

The old dwarf scratched his beard in thought, then shook his head, saying "Alas, my greatest concern is the canal. I've no burdens heavy enough to trouble the Light Warriors with. Although . . . loathe though I am to suggest it, you might try Elfland to the south. I hear they have some troubles that might benefit from your aid. Also, a traveler from Melmond, west of the strait came through here recently, lamenting some curse of the land."

"I see," Xak replied, "Thank you for all your help. If you have any need of us, do not hesitate to ask, but we must be going. The elven kingdom is in peril, and we must do what we can."

"Aye," Dorin replied, "Weak little elves can't do a thing on their own."

Tarin made a noise which drew the attention of the others, but when they looked, he and Zane were speaking in low tones, the thief looking slightly embarrassed. "Something vex you, friend Tarin?"

"No," Tarin replied quickly, "I just bit my tongue."

"Eugh," the king grimaced, "Painful that. Well, if nothing else, allow us to bed you for the night. Surely a night on solid ground won't harm you."

"True enough," Xak replied smiling, "You have our gratitude."

Shortly the four left the king's chambers, ducking through the low doorway and into the underground city. Xak moved beside Tarin and began to speak, but Zane put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head, and the healer let the matter drop. The black mage spoke up, saying "I'm going to the inn. We've had a long day, and I need rest."

"I agree," Xak said alongside Tarin's nod, "Coming, Barbatus?"

"In a bit," the man said, "I'd like to see their smith first."

Nodding, the other three moved away as the warrior made his way through the city, stopping here and there to ask for directions. Eventually, he came upon a structure that, like many others, was built into the side of the cavern wall, with the image of a hammer and anvil over the doorway. As he was about to enter, he felt something small collide with his leg and, looking down, saw three dwarven children swarming around his feet, staring up wide-eyed and babbling.

"Hey, there," the big man said smiling, "What can I do for you three?"

"Mister! Mister!" one babbled, "Are you really a Light Warrior?"

Laughing, Blotch said "That's right, I am. And who are you?"

The first child, Blotch guessed to be about seven, although he already had a surprising growth of beard, said proudly "I'm Gravol. This is Taarna and Bidig."

Blotch looked at the other two, another boy and a girl who appeared to be the oldest. Before Blotch could respond, a gruff voice called "Oy! You kids leave that poor man alone!"

Looking up, the warrior saw a man with a bald head and a long blond beard standing with his hands on his hips, looking sternly at the children. Bidig called back "But Da! He's a Light Warrior!"

"Aye, he is," the man said as he came forward, "And the Light Warriors certainly have better things to do than play with you lot. Come on, your ma has supper on the table, and you know how she gets when we're late."

As one, the three children acquiesced and trudged away, glancing back now and then. Once they had made their way into a house a little way down the street, the man turned and said "I'm sorry about that, Sir Barbatus. The children have never seen a human before, and with all this hullabaloo about you being a Light Warrior, they couldn't resist."

Chuckling, the warrior replied "It's alright, I like kids. And don't bother with that 'sir' nonsense, I grew up the son of a clerk. My friends call me Blotch."

Reaching up to grasp Blotch's hand, the dwarf said "I'm Garret, a jeweler."

"Gravol's got an impressive beard for his age, Garret," Blotch said, "you should be proud."

"Aye," Garret grinned, "He's barely reached his nineteenth year, and already he needs a fine comb! Bidig is well on the way, too."

Blotch stared in surprise. "Nineteen? Really?"

"Aye," Garret said, then adopted a look of realization, "Ah, I forgot. Humans age faster than dwarves, don't they?"

"I guess so," Blotch said bewildered, "I'm only twenty myself."

"Great gold nuggets!" Garret exclaimed, "You're a young one, to be sure. But you look fully grown. I knew you aged faster, but I didn't think it was that fast."

"Wow," Blotch said, "How old are you?"

"Two-hundred thirteen this summer," the dwarf answered.

"By the Kraken's Ink!" Blotch replied, "I'll be naught but dust and bones at that age!"

Garret laughed aloud and slapped the warrior on the back, saying "You've a fine sense of humor, Blotch. And a way with children, too. You'll make a fine father one day. But I must be going. I wasn't lying about being late for supper, Greeva will have my beard for a blanket if I dally any longer. Good day, to you."

"And to you, Garret," Blotch called back before turning back to the smithy and entering.

Inside was a great forge and tools of all varieties. One wall displayed over a dozen axes and pikes, all masterfully crafted, though Blotch doubted any of them could functionally compare to the sword he'd claimed from Garland. Zane had said that an enchantment of no small level allowed the blade to cut through nearly any natural substance without harm.

"Help you, human?" came a voice from behind the low counter.

Looking, Blotch saw the smith standing shirtless and looking tired. Clearing his throat, Blotch said "Actually, I was just looking. I make it a point to always visit the smithy when I arrive somewhere new."

Eyeing the warrior up and down, the dwarf finally said "I'm Thymes, master of the forge. You look like a capable fighter. I guarantee no human-made blade can match mine."

Chuckling, Blotch drew his sword and replied "Well, I don't know if this was human-made, but I doubt yours could match it."

Taking the sword in hand, Thymes examined it for a moment, then sighed. Handing it back, he said "It was definitely made by humans, but before the great war, out of some magical metal. I cannot match that, no, but only because I do not possess the materials. If I had some of the metal they had then, I could better it!"

"What kind of metals?" Blotch asked.

Chewing his lip in thought, Thymes said "the most wondrous metal ever to be formed was Adamant. You bring me some of that, and I'll craft you the greatest sword in history."

"That's quite a boast," Blotch said skeptically, "could no one else with this 'Adamant?'"

"HA!" Thymes barked, "Elves can craft flimsy blades for fencing, certainly, but not a war-sword. They've no experience. And humans are too short-lived."

"What about another dwarven smith?" Blotch prodded.

"I returned to the cave only three winters past," Thymes replied, "I spent two centuries learning the craft in the Dragon Islands, under Bahamut himself!"

Blotch blinked in surprise. "Bahamut chose you?"

"Indeed, he did," Thymes said, "and wouldn't relinquish me until he'd named me master. Surprising that you know of him, though."

"I'm from Crescent Lake," Blotch explained, "a small city of sages to the east. The city elder is Lukahn."

"Ah," Thymes said, "A wise man, Lukahn. Prophesied the coming of the Light Warriors. I hear they're here in Ur. Say, are you one of them?"

"I am," Blotch answered, "Barbatus Teller, Prince Consort of Coneria, at your service. But you can call me Blotch."

Not caring to mask his surprise, the smith said "If you truly are, then mayhap you could actually find Adamant in your travels."

Suddenly leaping on top of the counter, Thymes gripped Blotch's arm and gazed fiercely into the warriors eyes, saying "You get me that Adamant, and I will craft for you the finest war-sword in all of history. I swear it!"

For a moment, Blotch only looked at the dwarf in front of him, then he nodded, saying "If I find it, you'll get it."

Nodding, Thymes released the warrior's arm and returned to the floor, saying "Thank you. My work will go down in history if you do. Until then, you've a finer weapon than I could craft you already."

Bidding the smith a good day, Blotch left the smithy and headed for the inn, hoping that he could indeed find the Adamant and help the dwarf's name be known for the rest of Time.


	10. To Reach An Understanding

Disclaimer: I want it, but I don't have it.

"You heard him!" Tarin said more loudly than he intended, "'Weak little elves' indeed!"

"You should have held your bearing," Zane said sternly, "You very nearly ruined the entire encounter."

"Bearing?" the thief said incredulously, "They're savages!"

"And you are biased!" the mage shot back, "I don't know what to make of you. You take great pains to conceal your elven heritage, and seem to want nothing to do with any part of it, yet you maintain elven prejudices and take offense to any slight against them. I'm starting to wonder if you even know what you want."

"I . . . but . . . that's ridiculous!" Tarin sputtered.

"Is it?" Zane challenged, "Tarin, I've kept your secret against my better judgment, but I think it's time you start answering a few of those questions you hate so much."

Tarin glowered and said "Keep pushing it and I'll tell them myself just to take your advantage away."

The mage threw his hands up in exasperation.

--

Xak sat with his back to the mast, furiously scribbling on a piece of parchment, trying not to think of all the water around him. He'd been trying to face his fears, but the mast was as close as he could get. As it was, his art was improving considering the conditions. The ship was continually rocking back and forth with no rhythm, the fog still persisted, and a storm had thrown them off-course already. Sighing, the healer put the parchment away and started back for the cabin.

Swaying with the ship, Xak made it to the door and opened it to see Zane cry "When are you going to learn that I am not your enemy?!"

Tarin and Zane both turned their heads to see the newcomer, and Tarin looked stubbornly away while Zane let out a heated breath and stormed out of the cabin saying "Maybe you can talk some sense into him!"

Bewildered, Xak entered, closing the door behind him. Tarin took a few idle steps without going anywhere and looked at the white mage for a moment before finally shouting "Fine! Here, you want to see? Look!"

Tarin violently pulled his dark hair back, revealing slightly pointed ears. Xak blinked in surprise, then said slowly "Well that certainly explains a few things."

"Doesn't it?" the thief said, letting his hair fall back into place.

"What it does not tell me is what you and Zane were arguing about," the mage said calmly as he moved to a chair.

Tarin sighed and turned away, saying "I'm not even sure. Honestly, he's probably right, he just keeps pushing."

"Pushing?" Xak said quizzically.

"Yeah, pushing," Tarin replied, "and I don't like being pushed."

"So you reacted the same way you always have when someone pushed you," Xak said empathically.

"Yeah," Tarin admitted, "that probably covers it."

"But he has a point," Xak said politely, "we are not your enemies."

"I know!" the thief said as he fell into a chair covering his face, "It's just . . ."

"You do not have to tell me if you do not want to," Xak said, "but I will listen if you do, and I will keep your confidence."

Looking up from his cupped hands, Tarin said "See, if he approached me that way, I'd have answered all his questions a long time ago."

Xak smiled and said "He does lack some of the finer points of tact, does he not?"

Tarin chuckled and fell silent for a long moment before saying "Marinaeis is my cousin."

Raising an eyebrow, the healer said "Then you are royalty?"

"My father was a count," Tarin answered, "but he was executed as a traitor, our lands and title stripped. I was still a kid, only about forty years old."

Seeing the eyebrow shoot up again, Tarin smiled and said "What, you think that just because I'm only half elf I'd age as fast as you?"

"I suppose it was a little foolish," Xak replied, "But you age faster than other elves?"

"By more than half," Tarin said "But I also learn faster, and that made education a problem. I was always smarter than everyone else around me, and faster. After the execution, my mother took me away to live in an outlying village where I got into a lot of trouble very quickly. She died around ten years ago, and I returned to the main kingdom. As you might imagine, I wasn't welcomed with open arms. The only friends I could make were thieves and street thugs, and we were always on the run. But we had fun, and we had each other. Until they found us."

The thief fell silent for a time, and Xak placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder saying "You do not have to go on if it is too painful."

Tarin shook his head and said "No, you deserve to know. We planned a burglary of the royal family. After all, I'd been in the palace plenty of times and knew the layout, the guards' patterns, all of it. We made it in and got a lot of gold, but on the way out we passed a room that wasn't locked and I stopped. Something from inside wouldn't let me just pass it by, for some reason. I was . . . transfixed. I couldn't help myself, I walked in despite the alarms, past most of the chests to a smaller one on a stand."

The thief then produced the orb from one of his many pockets saying "I found this. And I set off half the alarms in the treasury doing it. By the time I came to my senses, the guards were already swarming us. I ran. I left my comrades, my only friends, behind to save my own hide. After that I wandered wherever I could until the orb guided me to Coneria."

Xak nodded in understanding and said "What happened to your friends was not your fault, Tarin."

"I've tried to tell myself that for years," Tarin said "but saying 'the orb made me do it' sounds too much like a hollow excuse."

"It does sound that way," Xak agreed, "but it is not. In this case, the orb really did make you do it."

The thief looked at him for a moment, and finally smiled saying "You're all right, you know that?"

The healer smiled back and said "You are as well, whatever Zane might say in the next few hours."

Before Tarin could say anything more, sharp cries from the deck called their attention away. Drawing their weapons, the two charged out of the cabin to find the crew battling strange, man-like fish that had crawled their way onto the ship. "Cap'n!" a man shouted from ahead, "We're besieged by Sahags!"

On of the fish-men careened toward Xak, who brought his hammer to bear with all his might, sending the creature sprawling and leaking greenish blood onto the deck. Tarin jumped back from another who reached after him, and with a quick stroke removed the thing's hand. Screaming, the fish-man back pedaled to the railing and dove overboard. Zane stood with his back to one of the crewmen, his staff held up defensively. Six of the things grouped together and began advancing on the black mage when Blotch burst from below deck, sword in hand, screaming a battle cry.

Swinging his bastard sword in a wide arc, the warrior cleaved neatly through three of the creatures and plowed into another. While two grappled with him, the last lunged at Zane, who stepped back and raised his staff, but had no need to use it. The creature fell lifeless to the deck, it's blood decorating Tarin's sword. The thief looked as if he wanted to say something, but Zane pushed past him and, chanting quickly, loosed a bolt of electricity at one of the things that had managed to pin Xak.

The healer watched the sahagin convulse above him and slump to the deck. Scuttling out from under the thing, Xak took up his fallen hammer and looked about, but none of the fish-men remained who were alive. Tarin had dealt with two, the mages with one each, and Blotch had dispatched nearly half a dozen on his own.

Holstering his hammer, Xak called "Get the wounded lined up! I will not allow anyone to die today!"

--

"Keep the bandages tight, and change them once every six hours," Xak said to his last patient.

Murmuring his thanks, the man limped away, favoring his cut leg. The healer leaned back and sighed. He was exhausted. Nearly the entire crew had suffered some sort of injury, and all his strength had been spent fixing them. Sitting by the cabin door, the healer looked up as a shadow fell over him.

"Hello, Zane," Xak said politely, "how can I help you?"

Sitting next to him, the black mage was silent for a long while before saying "I don't know what you said to the thief, but it was effective."

"How do you mean?" The healer asked tiredly.

"Just now," Zane explained, "he came to me and told me a story of some interest about his homeland. He also said that he knows that I am not the enemy."

Xak smiled and said "All I did was offer a friendly ear."

The black mage looked at the white for a long moment and sighed. Shaking his head, Zane said "I simply don't have the way with people that you three do. Believe it or not, I don't mean to come off as . . . rude and impersonal as I often do. I try to be as polite and courteous as I can, but for some reason I always fail."

Xak laughed aloud before saying "Honestly, Barbatus and I have gotten used to it, and for the most part Tarin has as well. He simply has difficulty trusting, as I'm sure you know by now."

"And yet he trusts you and Blotch," Zane offered.

"That is because of who we are," Xak explained, "Barbatus is a fairly straightforward man. Give him a pint, a friendly brawl and a pretty girl, and he will be happy. I also open myself to all who ask, holding no secrets. This makes us easy to trust, because we are easy to understand. You, however, are enigmatic at best. Now, do not take this the wrong way, that is not a bad quality, but because he cannot read you, it will take the naturally suspicious Tarin a while to trust you."

Zane nodded and mulled what Xak said over as the two mages sat in silence for nearly an hour. Clouds rolled by the blue sky uneventfully as the crew bustled about their daily activities, those who were not too seriously injured to do so. Blotch would take up some of the more belaboring chores for those too infirm, and Tarin took the helm to relieve others. In spite of their recent encounter, the crew were hardened pirates accustomed to losses, and took the battle in stride.

Hours passed and the next few days wore on slowly as the crew returned to health thanks to Xak's magic. Fog and storms continued to confound Tarin and Zane and if not for Blotch's antics morale would have fallen. On the fourth day after the attack, Tarin stood next to the helm next to Zane pouring over a map, discussing their most probable location based on the night's stars when the cry of land came from the crow's nest. Looking up, the two men saw the shoreline in the distance. Zane pulled his spyglass from his sleeve and peered through, then handed it to Tarin shaking his head. The thief looked at the upcoming country, but saw no identifying markers, and handed the instrument back to the mage, who called "Eriks!"

Eriks arrived momentarily, still wearing the same pantaloons, and a vest as well, saying "Aye, Cap'n."

Zane handed the man the spyglass and pointed. After a moment of indecision, Eriks took the spyglass and looked, then handed it back and said "Wild country north of Coneria, west of Pravoca."

Tarin remained silent but Zane could hear his teeth grinding from several feet away, and said "We need supplies. Fruits and meat, and a few drums of grog wouldn't hurt, if we could find the barley."

"Oh, no, Cap'n," Eriks said emphatically, "This be evil land. A witch lives in the hills, they say. Turn us all into brooms, she would! Best to move on and try our luck elsewhere, says I."

Tarin looked at Eriks, then to Zane, and finally back at Eriks and said "Did you see a port?"

"Cap'n," Eriks began pleadingly, but a stern gaze caused him to shiver and say "Aye, a little way down the shore."

Tarin smiled and said "Don't worry Eriks, We're the Light Warriors, remember? What's to fear from a witch?"

Eriks shivered but nodded and moved away, and when he was gone, Tarin said to Zane "You're from around here, know anything about a witch?"

Zane thought for a moment, then answered "Rumors and hearsay. They say a witch has always lived in these hills, and whenever she gets old, she kidnaps a young girl to serve as her apprentice. There are also stories of trespassers turned into brooms."

"Well," the thief said "surely Xak can turn us back, right?"

"Surely," Zane agreed, then called "Send for Xak and Blotch!"

After a short scuffling on the deck, the warrior and healer arrived as the port came into view from the stern. Yawning and rubbing his wild hair, Blotch said "Is this Elfland?"

Zane shook his head and Xak asked "How far off course are we?"

"Worse than last time," the black mage answered, "but fortune allowed us yet another mystery port."

"Well" the white mage said resignedly, "It is not as if we have any shortage of time."


	11. Blindness and Broomsticks

Disclaimer: If I owned it, I wouldn't be working for the government.

"So I was thinking," Tarin said conversationally as the four trudged through the wetland, "being that she has a long heritage to draw from, this witch might know something about how to break the spell from Marinaeis."

"Really?" Xak said, "I would think that the elven sorcerers would be at least as capable as this witch, if not more so."

"You'd be surprised," the thief responded as he jerked his boot from a mud hole it had gotten stuck in, "Elven wizards aren't great at thinking outside the book."

The white mage raised an eyebrow at the analogy, but continued on in silence while Blotch said "Is that why we left the crew to gather supplies at the shoreline?"

"That and Zane," Tarin said casually.

The black mage jerked his head in the thief's direction, and Xak chuckled lightly. Returning his attention to the land in front of him, the warlock said "There is no knowledge that is not power, especially in the realm of magic."

"It is true," Xak mused, "While one might dismiss her as a rural hedge witch, the secrets her line of spellbinders has uncovered in their solitude could be revolutionary."

"It could also get us turned into brooms," the fighter said with a shudder, "Why did you have to tell me about that, anyway? I'd have been much better off not knowing."

"As I said," Zane said matter-of-factly, "there is no knowledge that is not power."

"Yes, but ignorance is bliss," the warrior replied.

Tarin and Xak both chuckled, and even the black mage let out a quick breath that could have been a laugh. The four travelers continued on for the better part of an hour as the wetland turned to plains, spattered by sparse evergreens and rodent holes. As the sun rose to its zenith, a large, rocky hill came into view, the mouth of a cave sitting at its base. The light warriors slowed to a halt a few strides from the entrance and could see stairs carved into the stone leading deeper into the earth, torchlight emanating from within.

"Well," Blotch began, "I don't know about you three, but I'd definitely call that a witch's den."

"Your dependence on children's stories never ceases to amaze me," Tarin said flatly, provoking another chuckle from the mages, and a grimace from the warrior, who responded by lightly thumping the thief on the back of the head.

Blotch and Tarin both laughed as the thief jumped to the side in recoil, but the four companions quickly quieted as they composed themselves for the upcoming encounter. Blotch began drawing his sword, but Xak put a hand on his elbow and shook his head, saying "I believe we have a better chance avoiding a transformed existence if we do not threaten the witch who has the final say."

After a moment of comprehension, the warrior sheathed his half-drawn weapon and started forward, followed by his allies down the stairway. The cavern was well lit and fairly straightforward, leading into a tunnel which stretched on in a single path wide enough for all four to stand comfortably abreast, populated only by torches, cobwebs and brooms which moved about on their own.

Blotch jerked to a stop when he saw the brooms, causing his companions to halt as well, and stared. Without taking his gaze from the brooms, the warrior said quietly "Those brooms are moving by themselves."

Tarin twitched nervously, but Xak simply walked to the nearest broom and picked it up to examine it. After a long moment the white mage chuckled and said "There is nothing to fear. The enchantments on this appliance are nowhere near complex enough to be a polymorph spell."

"Normal brooms, then?" Zane said as he advanced to the broom Xak was holding.

"Yes," the white mage replied, handing the broom in his hand to his friend, "given a simple enchantment to keep the cave clean."

The black mage examined the broom for a moment, then placed it upright on the ground where it simply continued to sweep dust out of the path.

The warrior shrugged and started forward but Tarin held back saying "Are you certain?"

Blotch looked back at the thief and said "Well, they are the experts, are they not?"

After a moment's hesitation, Tarin sighed and started forward again, quickly catching up to the others. The tunnel wasn't particularly long, and about halfway to its end was a small wooden door set into the wall. The four stopped as Zane stepped forward and placed his thin hand on the door and concentrated. The black mage opened his magical senses to the environment, taking in anything relevant to the dark arts.

After a long moment, Zane said "I sense a presence of dark magic, but . . . it is not volatile. Strange. Xak?"

The white mage stepped forward and placed his hand on the door next to Zane's and closed his eyes. "Sadness," Xak said after a moment, "shame, distress and . . . fear."

The two mages let their hands fall and remained silent as Blotch said "Nothing to worry us, then."

"I wouldn't be so confident," Tarin chided, "A fox is small and frail, with minimal aggression, but when cornered and frightened it can be more ferocious than any wolf."

"And this fox is a black mage," Zane added.

"She may even be a wizard," Tarin added, but the black mage shook his head.

"No," Zane stated, "She has power, perhaps more than I, but not enough to be a wizard. Not by half."

The four looked at each other for a moment, then, finally, the black mage drew in his breath and pulled the wooden door open. Inside was a large chamber filled with chests, shelves, workstations, books, phials and items too strange to identify, dimly lit by candles scattered haphazardly wherever there was room. And at the far wall, behind one of the tables was the most beautiful woman Zane had ever seen.

Unkempt blond hair hung in strings about her face, her wizard's hat several paces away on the floor, her black robes were dirty and torn in some places and she glanced about, almost in a panic as she sat curled on the floor and cried "Who's there?! I'll turn you all to brooms, I swear it!"

"I am afraid that threat will not work on us," Xak said politely, "I have already read the enchantments on your cleaning supplies."

Zane narrowed his concealed eyes slightly as he noticed that it wasn't until the white mage spoke that the witch faced him. Tarin stepped forward and offered "Please, miss, we're not here to hurt you."

"Stay back!" the witch shouted in the thief's direction, waving her hands furiously.

"Oh, this is ridiculous," Blotch said finally as he began advancing, "Why should we be catering to this hedge witch who lives in filth? Listen here, woman, I am—"

"Blotch!" Zane barked loudly, much to everyone's surprise, "Can't you see she's blind?"

The warrior blinked in surprise then looked more closely at the witch huddled in the corner. Before he could speak, Zane stepped forward and said "Please forgive us for our intrusion, lady. I am Zane, a black mage from Coneria. My companions are Tarin, a thief from . . . abroad; Xak, a white mage from Pravoka; and Blotch, a fighter from Crescent Lake. Blotch and myself are confirmed to be Light Warriors, the other two still await their trials."

The witch stared at the black mage for a moment, then slowly drew herself up, regained her composure and said in a much calmer voice "Come forward, Zane of Coneria, and only you."

The black mage walked slowly over until he was less than a stride away, and the witch raised her hand slowly, reaching beneath Zane's hat, carefully drawing her hands across his face. Finally she let her hand fall and said "You speak the truth. You have much potential, Zane."

The black mage gave a brief thanks and the witch addressed all four, saying "I am Matoya, the Witch of the Conerian Wilderness. To what do I owe the honor of the Light Warriors' visit?"

Tarin began to speak, but Zane spoke faster, saying "We've been thrown off course, on our way to Elfland to see to Prince Marinaeis' plight."

"Plight?" Matoya said quizzically.

Tarin grabbed Xak's elbow to hold him back, grinning while Zane said "He's been cursed to an endless sleep."

"Hm," the witch said stroking her chin, "I have much experience with enchantments, and can break most. What kind of magic was it? Black of course, but was it from the schools of Elfland?"

Zane hesitated before answering "I'm not certain. The spell was cast by Astos."

"Astos!" Matoya hissed, "That motherless worm stole my crystal!"

Tarin released Xak's arm and the two approached together with Blotch as the white mage asked "Crystal?"

Matoya jerked her head in Xak's direction, seeming to have forgotten he was there, then said "Yes . . . Tarin?"

"Xak," the white mage said pleasantly.

"Xak," the witch said apologetically, "The Revelation Crystal. An immensely powerful artifact held by the Witch of the Conerian Wilderness for hundreds of years. The vision and divination based powers it conveys to the possessor are more valuable than any sword."

"But it demands a heavy price," Tarin concluded, "your natural sight."

Matoya lowered her head and said "Yes. Without it, I cannot see. I could break Astos' spell with a tonic made from an herb unique to these hills . . . but without the crystal, I couldn't begin to brew it."

"We'll get your crystal," Zane said, "and Astos."

"You would do that?" Matoya said reluctantly.

"I will," the black mage answered, "You have my word. Is there anything we can provide you with until we return?"

The witch shook her head saying "My brooms see to my daily needs. Although . . ."

"Yes?"

"It's a little embarrassing, but . . . I can't find my hat."

Zane looked left then right and walked to where the conical, wide-brimmed hat lay on the ground, scooped it up and returned to the witch, placing it gently on her head, saying "There. Now you look like a proper mage."

Matoya smiled despite herself as Zane bid his farewell and made his way to the door with the other three. At the threshold, the black mage lingered momentarily as he gazed at the witch, now feeling her way to her chair. Silently he closed the door and headed toward the exit of the cave behind his companions.

As he rounded the stair's corner to the mouth of the cave, he saw Xak smiling at him and Tarin and Blotch failing to hold in their laughter a few paces away. "What?" Zane demanded without preamble.

Tarin and Blotch no longer bothered trying to hide their amusement, and Xak chuckled lightly as he said "We're just happy to see you so . . . interested in Matoya, is all."

"Of course I'm interested," Zane said irritably, "She's the only means we know of to awaken that elven prince."

"Oh, come on," Blotch said jovially, "you never lead a dialogue like that. And not only that, but you were more than just polite, you were _nice_!"

"Come on," Xak said kindly, "we should get back to the ship before sunset."

Xak, Tarin and Blotch set off the way they came with Zane trudging behind, muttering "It's about time."


	12. Here Be Monsters

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy is a creation of someone else, I'm just borrowing it.

"I don't believe it," Tarin said incredulously.

The thief stood at the stern of the _Infernal _next to Zane, staring wide-eyed at the swiftly approaching land mass before him. "Indeed," the warlock agreed, "it would seem the dice have finally landed in our favor."

Tarin gave Zane an odd look at his wording, then called over his shoulder "Eriks!"

After a few moments the resident location expert arrived, wearing a vest and short cut pants saying "Aye, Cap'n?"

Handing the former pirate his spyglass, Tarin pointed at the land and said "Identify."

Eriks shuffled up to the railing and looked through the spyglass for a short moment before lowering it and saying "Elfland."

Tarin let out a triumphant bark while Zane retrieved his spyglass from the surprisingly clean Eriks and sent him after Xak and Blotch. Before they arrived, however, another man stepped forward, a pipe in his mouth under a bushy mustache. The captain and first mate had seen him around, always looking disheveled, his long hair rarely hanging free, dressed in finer clothing than the rest of the crew, though not by much. Stepping up to Tarin, he said "Captain, I don't think we should bring the _Infernal _directly into port here."

The thief and mage exchanged looks and Tarin asked "Why?"

"We've been here before," the man said simply.

Tarin swore quietly as Zane glanced between them before understanding dawned on him. Silence followed for a few moments as the three men contemplated their options when Xak and Blotch arrived. The fighter yawned obliviously while the healer took in the ominous air between them and asked "Something wrong?"

"We've finally arrived at Elfland," Zane said disparagingly, "and they will probably recognize this vessel as a pirate ship, seeing as it's plundered here before."

"Ah," was all the white mage said.

"Is that why there are three elven ships coming this way?" Blotch said pointedly.

The mages jerked their heads in the direction of the oncoming vessels, and Tarin bolted in the direction of the mast, calling up to the crow's nest "Hoist a white flag! Now!"

Grabbing the nearest man roughly by the arm, Tarin ordered "Get every man lined up on deck. Our lives depend on it!"

The man's eyes widened before he bolted below deck, shouting his orders. Blotch, who had followed and overheard, bellowed across the deck "All stop! Weigh anchor! Drop what you're doing and line up! Be quick or be dead!"

Tarin jumped lightly to the netting to see the oncoming ships over the stern before dropping down and saying "We've got about ten minutes before they're on us. I hope this works."

Shortly the entire crew was lined up and the thief wasted no time addressing them, saying loudly "Listen up! Those are elven ships coming, and I understand they'll probably remember this ship."

This was met with a low mumbling among the men, which was silenced by the captain's next words; "They're going to board us, and we're going to let them. When they ask, and believe me, they will, you are to tell them your name; that your occupation before you joined the crew was a perfectly legitimate one; that you are all from Pravoka, and joined AFTER we defeated the pirates besieging said city. Are there any questions?"

There was a moment of silence before one man asked "What does 'legitimate' mean?"

There was a rumble of agreement as Tarin snapped "You weren't criminals! Whatever your job was, make something up if you have to, you were not criminals! You were farmers, or field hands, or thatchers, or fishermen. Anything but criminals. Understand?"

The crew nodded, going over what Tarin said amongst themselves as the thief leapt up to the netting again to check on the ships and dropped, saying "All of you, about face, and stay where you are!"

The crew slowly turned the line to face the other way as Tarin, calling for his three comrades, sprinted over to the landing and waited for the elven flagship to arrive. The wait wasn't long, and soon an elven galley and drifted up on either side of the _Infernal_ and a plank extended from the starboard ship, followed by six elves, four in simple, matching green tunics trimmed with brown and sheathed but ready swords, the last two dressed in similar clothing but far finer, with much more embellishing.

Dipping slightly as the boarders arrived, Tarin said "Greetings, gentlemen, I am Tarin Marinori, Captain of this vessel, to what do I owe the pleasure, Captain . . . ?"

"Elias," the elf in the finest uniform responded, "Captain Elias Calbolge, Royal Elven Navy. Your ship matches the description of a pirate vessel we are to be on the look out for."

"I should hope so," Tarin said as he rose, "the _Infernal_ once belonged to the pirate Bikke, before we liberated the human city of Pravoka from his grasp, a point of pride among my crew. We claimed the ship as spoils."

The elven captain looked down his nose at the thief in mild skepticism before saying "What is your business within our waters?"

Tarin gestured to his companions saying "My comrades and I seek audience with the prince's regent. It is a matter of utmost importance, or we would have provided advance notice."

"I'm sure you would," Elias said mildly before stating "Because you boast a white flag, you shall be allowed to petition for an audience, under escort. Should you be turned away, you will be escorted back to your ship and out of our waters. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly," Tarin said as he bowed his head again slightly, smiling pleasantly all the while.

Captain Elias eyed the thief for a moment before saying "Gurtanil, select three of the crewmen here to question before we continue."

The elf with slightly less finery than Captain Elias moved to one of the men lined up before him and began speaking softly, listening intently to his answers. Meanwhile, Elias said "You and your three companions seem quite unusual compared to the rest of the crew. Tell me, captain, what is the nature of your audience, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Not at all, captain," Tarin responded amiably, "we seek to aid your country in the most vital of ways."

Elias raised his eyebrows and cocked his head slightly before inquiring "Oh? And how is that?"

"The matter of the Prince's plight," the thief said "we wish to resolve it."

At this, Elias' eyes narrowed as he said "And what makes you think you could break the curse when so many others have tried?"

"At the moment, we can't," Tarin said smoothly, "but if we can get the proper information from the regent, then we might be able to manage a minor miracle."

The elf stood silently for a moment before saying "You've quite the confidence in your abilities to state it so brazenly. However, the regent does not see just anybody. Since the curse was inflicted many charlatans have claimed to be able to remove it for only a 'minor fee.' What have you that will convince him that you are not simply one more in a long line?"

Although his expression and demeanor never wavered, Tarin hesitated slightly at this question and glanced at his comrades. Blotch had his brows furrowed in concentration, and Xak seemed to be eyeing the elven captain suspiciously. Zane, however, instantly realized the difficulty Tarin was having and said "For one thing, we ask nothing in return."

Captain Elias glanced in the black mage's direction, saying "And, you are . . . ?"

"Zane Althizar," the warlock replied, "First mate aboard this ship."

Before the elven captain could respond, Gurtanil had reappeared and whispered into his ear, causing him to nod and say "Well, we've determined satisfactorily that you wish no ill will upon our nation, and we shall begin the escort. I assume all necessary preparations have already been attended?"

"Of course," Tarin said lightly, "We only await your signal."

"Very good," Elias said, then turned and strode back to his own ship, his followers in tow.

Tarin stood, smiling politely until the other ship began to move away, then turned and said "Get the ship moving, follow the ship in front of us, keep the other two at our sides."

Blotch looked slightly perturbed at Tarin's manner, but barked the necessary orders out to the crew. Shortly the _Infernal_ began moving slowly in synch with the elven vessels. Tarin walked calmly to his cabin, Zane close behind. The thief calmly opened the door and walked in, not bothering to close the door behind him, which Zane attended. For a few moments there was silence, then Tarin exploded, pacing back and forth, flailing his arms and saying "Vile, pompous, arrogant, treacherous, cocky, conceited, egotistical, haughty, self-important . . . _elves_!"

The black mage said nothing, only watched as Tarin vented his anger. Finally, the thief turned to his comrade and said "And I suppose have some oh-so-insightful advice for this situation?"

Zane simply shook his head saying "Not at all. I don't have any experience with elves myself, but from what I could assume, you handled that masterfully."

Tarin blinked in surprise, then sat at the small table and said "We shouldn't have any problem getting to Sarcas, he's always been a die-hard believer in prophecies."

"Sarcas?" Zane asked.

"The prince's advisor," Tarin explained, "In the event that something happens to the prince, he serves as regent."

The black mage grunted his understanding before saying "So being the Light Warriors should be enough to get what we want?"

"Well," the thief replied, "that and some clever diplomacy. Xak would be our best bet."

Zane nodded slowly before saying "Should we make any other preparations?"

"Wouldn't hurt to get your best robes ready," Tarin said off-handedly, "but other than that we should be good."

Zane nodded shortly and turned to leave but hesitated at the door, saying "What about the others?"

Tarin looked up and blinked, not understanding. The black mage looked at the thief from under his hat and said "Xak and Blotch. Aside from some grooming, is there anything that can be done on their part to help matters?"

The thief shook his head, saying "As long as Xak's instincts hold out and Blotch keeps quiet, we should be fine."

Zane nodded again and left, his mind troubled. As he strode out to the main deck and eyed the crew, something nagged at the back of his mind that he just couldn't put his finger on. Sighing, the mage convinced himself that it was only his imagination this time.


	13. Arrogance

Disclaimer: You should know it by now.

Blotch eyed the elven guard beside him malignantly for the fourth time in the past ten minutes. When the four travelers had been led off their ship, an escort of no less than twenty elvish soldiers had surrounded them to lead them to the palace so as to petition for an audience, and this one had grabbed the warrior's arm as though he were a prisoner. In response to the fighter's gaze, the elf shivered a bit and rubbed his hand.

Blotch chuckled slightly to himself, remembering how he'd squeezed his antagonist's hand until he had cried out. His humor was short lived, however, as he once again looked around to see the townspeople staring in fear and awe at the procession before them. Blotch wasn't the smartest man in the world, but it didn't take a genius to see that this wasn't the normal way of doing business. Unfortunately there was little he could do, given the circumstances, and simply followed along.

Save for the stares and hushed voices, the walk was uneventful. Crowds parted easily for them and their escort said nothing, allowing the warrior to take in his surroundings. The structures were all made of varying colors of stone, and the road they walked through was some kind of silver brickwork. Looking ahead, Blotch could see the elven palace swiftly approaching, gleaming in the sun. Either the entire thing was polished on a regular basis, or it was constructed out of some kind of metal, he wasn't sure which.

While he gazed at the tallest of the towers, he passed beneath a raised portcullis, surprising him that he'd spent that long staring. Already in the courtyard, the warrior paid more attention to his immediate surroundings. Servants and some young nobles stared brazenly at them but said nothing. After rounding a fountain, the procession came to a halt before a set of locked doors flanked by guards with halberds.

"No weapons," one of the guards said, looking at the large blade on Blotch's back.

The warrior glanced to Tarin, who nodded while surrendering his rapier and two daggers. Zane and Xak had already given up their weapons, so Blotch followed suit, handing first his rapier over, then the bastard sword, saying "If anything happens to this, I'll be very unhappy."

The guard taking the weapon hesitated a moment but remained silent while confiscating the blade. After a quick search of their persons, the standing guards opened the doors and the four companions were led through, entering a large antechamber with doors branching in all directions. Their escort led them through a door near the center which wound oddly past several other branching halls and doors, until finally arriving in a decently sized room from what Blotch guessed to be the east end, with another door to the west and a set of double doors to the north.

Two more standing guards flanked the double doors, but opened them without question and the group was led into the royal audience hall, one man sitting on a throne gazing down at the large procession as it halted before them. Captain Elias stepped forward and bowed slightly, saying "Lord Regent Sarcas, I have a riddle for you."

The man on the throne nodded and the captain asked "How do you get a warrior's sword away from him?"

"How?" came the reply.

"Simple," Elias said as he turned and faced Blotch, "You ask him for it."

At his last word, all twenty of the elves surrounding the four visitors drew their weapons and pointed them at their now captives. Blotch growled but took no action, realizing that without their weapons, they had little chance against twenty armed men on such short notice. Elias turned back to Sarcas and, gesturing to Tarin, said "May I present Tarin Marinori, son of the traitor Veril Marinori, and escaped accomplice to last year's raid on the royal treasury."

Blotch remembered Tarin telling him that story as he looked at his friend. The thief wore a look of utter hate, but said nothing. Zane, however, made a noise that might have been a curse and shook his head. Xak rubbed his chin in consideration as Sarcas said "What idiocy has possessed you to believe you could return here undiscovered?"

"None," Tarin replied simply, "If I didn't want you to know I was here, you wouldn't."

Sarcas raised his eyebrows at that, saying "Such arrogance, to believe you could elude us in our own land."

"I have before," Tarin replied smugly.

"Such disrespect will not be tolerated," the regent replied absently, "You and your accomplices shall be stocked and flogged to teach you manners, and then you will be executed."

Before anyone could react to the regent's declaration, Tarin said "So the man who is supposedly intelligent enough to be the royal advisor doesn't even have the common sense to wonder why I'm here?"

Sarcas narrowed his eyes as he looked at the thief and said "Very well, vagabond, you have aroused my curiosity. What have you come to steal this time?"

Blotch had been slowly moving away from Tarin while this exchange had been occurring, and was working his way toward one of his captors. He continued inching along, hoping Tarin could keep the regent busy long enough for him to get within striking range. The thief did not disappoint, saying "You really believe that I would give Elias my real name if I wanted to steal from you, knowing that Viscount Gurtanil was on his ship?"

"I suppose that would be foolish, even for you," the regent replied, "But then your foolishness has astounded me in the past."

"And your skull is still as thick as the castle walls," Tarin shot back, "but our personal dislike of each other isn't the point, here."

Sarcas sneered at the thief and said "Whatever you have to say, say it quickly, cutpurse, my patience is running thin!"

"First of all," Tarin said, glancing back at Blotch, who nodded back, "we're here to help you. Secondly, this isn't nearly enough guards."

No sooner had the last word been uttered than Blotch sprang into action, grabbing one of the two nearest guards' sword-hand and striking the other with a jaw-shattering fist. Jerking the first guard's arm around, the sword blocked another, whose wielder Blotch kicked with enough forced to send him sprawling.

The fighter then gripped the sword still in its owner's hand with both of his and spun, using the guard's body as a weapon which collided with three others before flying free of the sword and impacting two more. Righting the blade he had procured, Blotch turned to face the quickly reforming guard, two of which had no weapon. Glancing to his right, the warrior saw that Tarin had also pilfered a blade from a guard, probably on that had never been drawn.

The thief and the warrior stood facing nearly thirty armed guards that stood between them and Sarcas, who stood, saying "You can't possibly believe that the two of you alone can best all my men?"

"The thought never occurred to us," Blotch replied.

Sarcas gave them a curious look as Tarin finished "We were just buying time for this."

At this point, the thief and warrior both stepped to opposite sides, revealing Zane, who had been chanting this whole time. As soon as they were out of the way, the black mage's eyes shone with a yellow light and a bolt of lightning flew from his outstretched hand, striking one guard, then immediately arcing to the nearest, then the next, and the next and so on, until all but two lay twitching on the marble floor.

Blotch sprinted forward and plowed into one of the remaining guardsmen, knocking him against the wall while wresting the halberd from his grip. Practically tossing the now unarmed guard aside, the warrior reared back and hurled the polearm with all his might. The weapon sank point first into the door Sarcas had just been about to escape through, causing him to back-pedal into the throne and fall over it.

Blotch turned to the last guard standing and glared at him challengingly. The elf hesitated, glancing at his fallen comrades, then threw his weapon down and raised his arms in surrender. Nodding his approval, the warrior turned to see Xak tending the wounded, while Zane gathered their weapons into a cluttered pile. Tarin stalked up to Sarcas and grabbed his jerkin, pulling him closer to the thief's face, saying "Now look, you pompous, arrogant slime. I did steal from you once, but it wasn't gold I took."

Tarin pulled the orb from his jacket pocket and said "I took this, and it wasn't by choice."

The thief stepped away from the regent and walked back to Zane and Blotch who were standing by the weapons, and turned back to Sarcas and said "Would you like to know why we were able to beat your men so easily?"

The regent glanced at the halberd still sticking out of the door, then back at the thief and nodded. Tarin drew a deep breath and said "It's because we are the Light Warriors."

At first Sarcas adopted a look of skepticism, then, glancing from the orb still in the thief's hand to the other two that his companions had produced, his eyes widened in disbelief. Standing and walking forward, the regent said "Impossible! The Light Warriors are said to be men of virtue, men who can face the darkness unwaveringly! You are a thief!"

"Yes, he is," Xak said from behind him, leaning over one of the fallen guardsmen, "but it was not his choice to join us. It was the orb's doing."

"Zane has the people skills of a pack-mule," Tarin said, "Blotch bullies everyone he sees in a bar. Xak gets positively murderous when you threaten something he cares about. And I'm a thief."

"It's true, if a bit insulting," Zane said, casting the thief a perturbed look before continuing, "but if you have any knowledge of the prophecies, then know that both Blotch and myself have already passed our trials."

"I don't understand," Sarcas said, shaking his head, "How could the orbs choose such impure men to fight the darkness?"

"Near as I can tell," Blotch said, "the orbs know that you can't fight darkness without tasting it first."

The regent stood comprehending for a moment before gesturing to the ground, saying "But then why would you kill my guards so mercilessly?"

"We didn't," Xak said from behind him.

Sarcas looked and saw that already a few of the guardsmen had already begun to stand, although they took no action, uncertain of what to do next. "I've personally seen to the more serious injuries," the healer continued, "but given a few days rest, they'll all be fine."

For a long moment there was silence while most of the guardsmen picked themselves up off of the floor. The regent mulled this turn of events over in his mind before finally saying "Very well. What is it you have come for?"

"Astos," Zane said simply, "Where is he?"

Sarcas blinked in surprise, saying "You've come to find Astos?"

Tarin nodded, saying "He stole a powerful artifact from a witch in the Conerian wilderness. If we get it back for her, she'll provide us with a tonic that may be able to awaken Marinaeis."

The regent's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said in his former, regal voice "And what is it you'll demand in exchange?"

Huffing irately, Blotch barked "Nothing! Nothing, you stupid elf! We're just trying to help you people! How many times do we have to say it!"

Sarcas stepped back from the warrior's outrage and Tarin also gave him a perturbed look, but said nothing. Xak approached the regent and said "All we want here is information. Tell us where we can find him and we will go, and we will not return until we have the means to awaken your prince."

"Very well," the regent replied, "I do not know where he is, but the rumor is that the information you seek is to be found in the Northwest Keep. Now go. Should you prove successful and keep your word, then will I believe your claims, and not a moment before."

"One thing," Blotch said before anyone could move, "I want my sword back."

"There are several at your feet," Sarcas said dumbfounded, "as well as a number of other weapons. You may have your choice of any of them. Surely our craftsmanship is finer than human-made blades."

"Uh-uh," the warrior persisted, "Mine's a relic from before the great war. I want it back, the big one."

"I see," the regent said, "in that case . . . Saylit, fetch the warrior's sword; the large one."

While one of the aids scurried off through a doorway, Tarin rummaged through the fallen weapons before picking up a thin longsword made of elvish material, saying "I'm keeping this."

Sarcas nodded as Tarin dredged up a scabbard for it and another like it, handing it to Blotch. The warrior took it and attached it to his belt, then sheathed the sword in his hand. After a moment, the thief then hefted a large warhammer, saying "Xak, you might want to trade the old one in for this."

The healer approached and lifted the hammer, weighing it carefully in each hand before asking "What is it made of? It seems too light to be useful."

Shaking his head, Tarin replied "Mithril."

Hefting a crosier from the pile, Zane asked "Mithril?"

"Elven silver," the thief explained, "Stronger than steel, but half the weight."

"And triple the value," Sarcas interjected, "Perhaps you should stop by the metallurgist before setting off, unless your armor is a relic as well?"

Blotch grunted in annoyance, then said "You know what? I think I will."

The four companions gathered together and headed toward the door, and just before the warrior passed through, he turned to Sarcas and said "Oh, and I'm sure that you won't mind if I tell the smithy that you're covering the cost this Time."


End file.
